Better Together
by SepticAbzies
Summary: An old evil rises and threatens the destruction of all humanity right in time for Emily to add being a Samurai Ranger to her list of life struggles. But can they all work together long enough to get the job done? / PR Samurai Rewrite
1. 1: The Way of the Samurai

A/N: I hereby present to you all my own version (yes, another one) of Power Rangers: Samurai. It does have a much darker theme to it than Saban's version (which I do not, as you can obviously tell by my other PR stories). There were some flaws, yes, I'm still going to use some terms you are familiar with.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Power Rangers Samurai or Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. I just own most of the plot and the characters and things you don't recognize from the original version.

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _"An old evil rises and threatens the destruction of all humanity right in time for Emily to add being a Samurai Ranger to her list of life struggles."_

 **Better Together**

 _ **Power Rangers: Samurai REDO**_

 **Season 1, Episode 1:** _The Way of the Samurai_

 **Greenwood, Montana**

 _ **April 21, 2014**_

Emily Shields woke up to the premature sunrise in a cold sweat, gasping for air. That dream again...

The old, abandoned house in the woods, with the rusty door and lock, the cracked and broken windows, and the left side _**(the house's left, not hers)**_ entirely burned black, like a fire had started and/or occurred there or something...

But this time, something was different. Unlike the previous nights _**(or the previous years, rather)**_ where more of the house was shown _**(like the interior)**_ , this dream actually showed Emily _where_ this house was located.

The same city where her sister's old college was...

 _ **Panorama City, California.**_

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Greenwood, Montana**

 _ **April 22, 2014**_

"Are you sure about this?" Riley Griffin asked her the next morning, as the two childhood friends waited for the bus that would take Emily from the bus stop in front of both of their ranches to the transit center downtown, about three-and-a-half miles away.

"Positive," was Emily's reply. "I need answers, Riles. I mean, why do I keep dreaming about this house? And why this one specifically?"

"I understand," Riley said. He wanted to stop her _**(mostly out of concern. Really, who knew how these dreams were effecting her mental health?)**_ , but he had repeatedly placed himself in her shoes.

The dreams, Emily had revealed, had started the night Panorama City police had sent Serena's stuff back to her house. She had had dreams like this before, but they were random. The next night, she would have a dream that was completely different. This dream, the one about this abandoned house in the forest, was the only one that had been repetitive, and still is, and neither rancher could determine why.

"Thank you," Emily replied softly, before Riley opened his arms, offering a hug.

Matthew Griffin exited the Griffin ranch house to witness their hug, and he smiled.

Riley was 16-and-a-half years old, while Emily was 17. They had met in second grade, after Riley skipped first grade, due to his surprisingly high IQ he had demonstrated in kindergarten. They had been super close ever since. _**(And coincidentally, the two families were also neighbors, so their moms were close friends too.)**_

Matt cleared his throat audibly as he neared the bus stop the two were at.

"Be careful out in California, Emmy," he said, she and Riley breaking up their hug, so she could give Matt one.

"I will, Matt," Emily replied, as the two broke the hug. "Look after Mom for me, okay? Loosing Serena wasn't easy, for any of us, but me leaving the house even for one summer will be devastating for her."

"As long as you report back daily," a woman's voice spoke up, "I think she'll be fine."

"Mrs. Griffin," Emily breathed. She had a feeling Matt and Riley _**(the former of whom was fairly close to Serena)**_ would want to come and see her off, but their mom? She was touched by this. Emily cleared her throat. "All the same, though. I don't want Mom to be too sad because she's by herself all the time. Please, visit her. Make sure she's not lonely."

"Of course," Mrs. Griffin nodded, gently smiling at the girl. And Emily returned the smile.

"Thank you," Emily quietly said, before sharing a hug with the woman.

"Emily!" The said girl turned to face her mother, who was running towards the group with a brown, paper lunch bag in hand.

"Yes, Mom?" Emily asked, once the woman caught up with them.

Mrs. Shields handed her daughter the paper bag, "Here's some lunch for later, and there's also money and a credit card for later purchases. Spend it wisely."

Emily cracked a smile. "Mom, you know me. I'm always responsible. Worry about yourself."

"I can't help it, sweetie," Mrs. Shields pandered, looking to see if Emily had her over-the-shoulder bag _**(she did)**_.

"Don't worry about a thing, Mom," Emily gave a valid argument. "If any does go wrong, Cousin Dustin is right next door, in the town over, in Blue Harbor Bay. Remember?"

"You're right," Mrs. Shields finally conceded, as the bus came in view. "There's the bus, Hun. Be safe. I love you." Mrs. Shields gave her daughter a kiss on the forehead and a hug, before reluctantly letting her go.

Emily gave the Griffins another hug goodbye, before stepping on the bus, the first step away from home.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Downtown Transit Center, Panorama City, California**

 _ **April 24, 2014**_

It had taken her about thirty six and a half hours _**(one day, plus twelve hours)**_ to get to her destination _**(that was including all necessary stops she had to make)**_. She had slept for most of the trip, but she was awake now.

The minute she stepped off the bus, she knew she was hungry, but she also knew she had to find a decent hotel first.

She chose the hotel.

But she had no idea where the nearest hotel was. Fortunately, she quickly located the nearest citizen _**(an arguing duo)**_ and jogged over to them to ask.

"No, give it here, Uncle Bulk! It's mine!" They were arguing over a duffel bag, to her surprise.

"I'm the host, Spike! You give it!"

"Excuse me," Emily's soft voice easily cut through the tense air of their argument and stopped it. Both males turned to face the blonde. "I'm new to this city, so would you kindly tell me the location of the nearest hotel?"

"Of course," Bulk _**(she assumed)**_ replied. "Down on Main Street, one block away from Central Park, is the Paradise Hotel. It's not exactly the best or the nearest like you asked for, but it's close to everything in the city. No matter which direction you turn in, there are always at least two drugstores, one supermarket, and three restaurants. It's in that direction," Bulk pointing to his northwest.

"Thank you for your help," Emily sent them a smile before turning on her heal and walking in the direction the man pointed her in.

"No problem!" Bulk called back, before resuming the duffle bag struggle with Spike.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Central Park, Panorama City, California**

Emily had arrived in Central Park _**(so close to the hotel)**_ , and she smiled at all the little kids out and playing today.

"47, 48, 49, 50! Ready or not, here I come!" A boy was playing hide-and-seek with his friends.

Emily sat on the bench, just watching this kid play. Something _**(she didn't know what)**_ told her to keep watch over this boy. She saw one of the boy's teachers _**(an Asian female)**_ in the distance, playing with other students. But Emily couldn't shake that feeling...

Like something was going to happen to him or something...

"Brian, Jimmy? Where are you?" Emily stood up when the boy wandered into an alleyway _**(a dead ringer that something bad was going to happen)**_.

But when Emily finally got to the alley, it wasn't a child-kidnapper or a rapist that was waiting for him. It was...

 _ **An army of fish-faced monsters?**_

The boy screamed as the yellow-dressed monsters raised their swords and surrounded him.

Emily snuck a kick at one, and it seemed like all hell broke loose. She fought off these monsters left and right, and after twisting one's arm behind its back, she yelled at the kid, "Hide somewhere!"

Right as the boy hid behind a dumpster, Emily wrapped an arm around the monster's neck and snapped it.

But one other monster slashed Emily right across her back _**(it wasn't very deep or large, but it was quite painful)**_. It wasn't enough to make her fall _**(clearly these monsters' swords weren't as powerful as a horse's hooves that had stomped on your back)**_ , but it was enough to make her stumble. A kick to her side and then to the back of her knees made her fall to the ground.

But she didn't stop fighting.

Emily sent another kick at one, before a screen of smoke was activated. And before Emily knew it, she was watching a little red mechanical lion flying around in a blaze of fire, destroying the monsters, and someone strong was grabbing her by the shoulders. She looking at a man dressed in Japanese robes square in the face, who was telling her, "Get out of here, it's too dangerous!"

Emily nodded, letting the man guide her to the entrance of the alleyway, where Emily reached behind the dumpster to guide the boy out of here as well.

Both turned around to see the man dressed in Japanese robes standing next to a Ranger modeled after a samurai, dressed in red and back.

"Look before you, Marauders, this is the 18th leader of the Samurai Power Rangers, descendant of the man who destroy your master 400 years ago," the older man announced.

"Samurai Power Rangers?" Emily softly muttered.

"You have two choices: retreat now, or become rust on his blade!"

"Don't bother, Ji," said the Ranger in red, taking a black disk from his belt buckle and hooking it onto the hilt of the sword at his side. "They won't listen. They never do. _**Spin Sword!**_ " He drew his sword, pointing it at the monsters _**(Marauders, Emily believed the old man called them)**_ , before charging at them.

Emily could feel her face turning red as she watched the Red Ranger's expert sword moves and martial arts apparently.

He was quiet, but strong and very deadly. What she herself did to one Marauder, he could easily do to five at the same time.

"They are Marauders," the old man, Ji, told her. "Foot soldiers from the Nighlock army, an ancient enemy from Japan. They reside in the Netherworld, and they enter this world via the gaps."

"Where are these gaps exactly?" Emily asked, her heart pounding as hardly at the Red Ranger's sword hit the Marauders.

"Anywhere, from a crack in the sidewalk to a bush in one's yard."

The Red Ranger, in the distance, then pulled out a red disk from his belt buckle. "Time to heat things up! _**Lion Disk!**_ " He spun the disk, engulfing his sword with fire, before continuing to defeat the Marauders _**(much more quickly this time)**_.

"Who's he?" Emily motioned her head towards the man in red.

"The _**Samurai of Fire, Power Ranger Red**_ ," Ji replied, speaking softly as though the Red Ranger was someone great.

A giant explosion told the three watching that the Red Ranger was successful in defeating all the Marauders.

"He's amazing..." Emily breathed.

"Indeed," Ji agreed. He turned to the Red Ranger when he neared the group watching. "Amazing," Jii praised. "You've done it once again."

"Thanks, Ji," the Ranger replied, his sword hooked back at his side. "But there's no need for compliments."

"Again?" Emily asked. "You mean, this isn't the first time those things have attacked?"

"Heavens, no," Ji replied. "Remember, I mentioned they were an ancient enemy?"

Emily nodded, before turning the Ranger in front of her. Emily knew her face was red, and she was extremely nervous _**(was this Ranger really her first ever crush?)**_ , but she spoke up anyways, "Thank you, sir, for saving us. Sorry for any troubles. I should take this kid back to his class."

"You're welcome," was the Ranger's response. And he stared back at her as she rushed the boy back to his class, as she said. Once the two were out of range, he turned to Ji and asked, "I saw her fight the Marauders, and she's wearing a yellow cardigan. Could she be...?"

"The Lion Zord will tell us when the Ape Zord has found someone to lend her power to," Jii advised. "Until that happens, you must only worry about your three other fellow Samurai: the Blue, the Pink, and the Green. You four must unite if you are to stand any chance against Master Xandred when he awakens, and you all must be prepared to welcome the Yellow Samurai with open arms when they awaken as well."

The Red Ranger nodded. "I'll try–"

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Netherworld, Sanzu River**

"–my best, Ji," the Red Ranger replied. "But I'm used to fighting on my own."

"I understand, but we still have some time left," Ji said, as the two walked away from the battlefield.

General Octoroo lowered his staff, deactivating the eavesdrop feature.

"How naive," Octoroo chuckled. "They think they still have time to prepare."

A deep rumble with the Sanzu River nearby quickly caught his attention. "Oo-ah-oo, I've got a lump in my throat. Could what I hear be the Master's boat?"

The Junk Ship finally rose up from the depths of the vast river.

He rushed aboard, excited to see his Master again. Instead, the first person he saw was General Dayu, who was playing on her Harmonium a solemn, gentle tune.

"It sure feels good to be on board again," Octoroo commented, as his feet finally touched the old wood. "So, Dayu, where's the big red one? Come on, answer me! Just where is the barnacle of a boss? Where's Master Xandred? Out with it!"

"I get it, Octoroo," Dayu replied. "You missed him."

"Come on, tell me, tell me! Please!" Octoroo said. "You're the only one who knows! We've been without our leader for so long! He was almost defeated 400 years ago. Ever since then, I've been keeping an eye on renegade Nighlock, but they've been defeated everytime. Perhaps, with the Master here, we'll finally be able to flood the human world!"

"Silence, you fool!" Xandred's deep voice rang out throughout the cabin. "I have a splitting headache! So zip it, unless you want to spend your lifetime untying those noodles you call a face!"

"Oo-ah-oo," Octoroo sassed back, "you're pretty grumpy for someone talented enough to talk with his mouth closed. Marauders!" He called, and two Marauders quickly arrived. "Give him his medicine to ease his headache." The two Marauders had quickly poured medicine into his bowl, and after Xandred took a sip, Octoroo worriedly asked, "Feel better?"

"Ugh!" Xandred commented, "I don't want to even think about what those five Rangers did to me 400 years ago. Good thing I destroyed them all."

"Uh, boss? About that..." Octoroo hesitantly spoke up. "The great Bull Zord is still sealed away. The Swordfish, Beetle, Claw, Octo, and Tiger Zords have been severely damaged or lost in time, but the Lion, Dragon, Turtle, Bear, and Ape Zords...they survived, and out of those five, only the Ape Zord still needs to find a master, but apparently, it's very close."

A great silence immediately fell over the ship, and Dayu stopped her strumming.

"Tell us you're joking, Noodle Face," Dayu pleaded, before Xandred stood up in a rage.

"What?!" Xandred roared. "Those brats are still alive?!"

"There are only four Rangers out there, Master! We can defeat them easily!" Octoroo quickly argued.

"But what if they find their Yellow Ranger before we can, Octoroo?" Dayu argued back. "It only takes a minute to meet a Zord and bond to it. And it only takes one Ranger to defeat a Nighlock."

"She's right!" Xandred roared.

"Oo-ah-oo, calm down, Master!"

"Alright!" Action Commander Tooya had arrived aboard the Junk Ship. "Master Xandred's back in charge! It's party time!"

"HOW COULD THOSE SAMURAI BRATS ESCAPE ME?!" Xandred roared, rocking the entire ship.

"Oh, forget celebrating, Tooya," Octoroo bit back. "That mouth on your skirt is as ugly as Master Xandred's mood."

"Hey, if anyone here got hit with the ugly stick," Tooya sassed, "it'd be you."

"Listen, the best way to welcome the boss back is to sneak through a gap and scare up some humans," Octoroo calmly suggested.

"That right, boss?" Tooya asked.

"Do it," Xandred replied. "Then, I'll make those Samurai regret the day they messed with me!"

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Panorama City, California**

"Thank you," the boy's teacher said to Emily. "I've been looking everywhere for him."

"No thanks are needed," Emily quickly replied. "He's a little shaken up from the monsters that attacked him, so make sure he's comfortable."

"Of course," the teacher said. "Mia Watanabe. Let's keep in touch, okay?"

"Emily Shields. And sure thing."

And with one last smile at the Asian female, Emily turned back to the street and on her way back to her hotel.

Except...now she had lost her way. Which way did that man, Bulk, say the hotel was again?

It was Paradise Hotel, near Central Park. But which way from there?

She had gotten lost in all that commotion with the Ranger and the Marauders.

Especially the Ranger that had saved her. Oh, wait, she had said that already.

 _ **The Red Ranger...**_

"Hey," Emily jumped visibly and turned to face an African-American male wearing blue.

"Oh, hi..."

"Hey, you look lost. Do you need help?" The man asked.

"Oh, yeah," Emily quickly remembered what she was looking for. "Where is Paradise Hotel from here?"

"Two blocks that way," the man motioned to Emily's right. "And then turn left and then it's one more block."

"Okay..." Emily said, trying to memorize what he said.

"Kevin Mosley, if you ever need any more help."

"Emily Shields, I'm new here, so, thank you."

"I can tell."

"Where did you say to go, again?" Emily asked.

"I'll lead you there," a Hispanic male in green near them spoke up. "Paradise Hotel, right?" Emily nodded. "Yeah, I know where that is. Follow me."

Emily followed the male in green after waving goodbye to Kevin.

"Michael Hernandez," the male in green introduced himself. "Just call me Mike."

"Emily. Emily Shields."

"Very nice to meet you, Emily. What's your favorite soda?"

"Umm, Diet Coke. Why?"

Mike had stopped by a vending machine and was buying both of them a soda, Diet Coke for her and a Dr. Pepper for him.

"Oh, you don't have to," she quickly stated, before they continued to walk.

"It's okay," Mike replied. "Just take it. Just think of it as a token of friendship. If you ever need some help, you can always find me at the arcade, playing games."

"Okay," Emily nodded, smiling, before taking the bottle of soda from his hand. "Friends...Thank you."

"No problem," Mike replied before stopping. "Here we are. Paradise Hotel."

"Thank you, again," Emily said. "Really?"

"It's no problem, Emily," Mike gave Emily a piece of paper. "Here's my number. If you ever need anything, even if you just want to talk, don't hesitate."

Emily smiled once more as she watched him walk away. "Thank you."

She quickly entered his phone number into her contacts, saving it, and then shooting him a quick text, before heading inside.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Keller Forest, Panorama City, California**

Emily cautiously entered the forest, where she saw the abandoned house in her _**(strange)**_ dreams. She had gotten checked into her hotel room and had lunch about an hour ago. Now she was determined to find the house that was apparently so important to her.

Leaves crackled behind her, and her head immediately snapped towards the direction she heard them in.

Nothing there, so she turned back to her original course.

One step forward, however, and she heard more leaves and twigs crackle behind her.

She turned around again, and this time, she saw eyes glowing in one of the bushes.

Her heart began to pound harder and harder.

 _ **"Run, they're coming!"**_ She heard someone say, even though there was no one there. _ **"Run! RUN!"**_

The voice sounded so panicky that Emily decided to obey the command. She ran forward, seeing what she was supposed to be running from as she did.

 _ **Wolves. Wolves running beside her. And they looked mightily hungry.**_

So she sped up, only slowly down when the abandoned house from her dreams finally came into view.

A wolf howl sounded loudly behind her, causing Emily to quickly open the gate to the fence around the house.

As soon as she closed the gate, Emily noticed something odd. The wolves were sitting right outside the gate, now seemingly quiet harmless. It was almost like this house was like a safe house or something.

Feeling a little safer now, Emily walked up to the front door and twisted on the knob. It wouldn't budge.

But of course. It was old and rusty, if her dreams of this house had told her anything.

Wait! The window! Emily took two steps to her left, now facing the biggest window of the house. She slowly lifted up the window pane, and climbed in.

But as soon as she stepped foot on the creaking-wooden floor, Emily felt dizzy and disoriented. It seemed like her world was getting darker. Emily stumbled over to a mirror nearby, hanging over a table. Her reflection was shared with a black aura.

When Emily's knees finally gave up on her, they hit the ground hard. Right when she was about to pass out completely, a bright yellow light filled the air.

When it faded, Emily noted her condition improving. She was no longer feeling dizzy, and her vision was starting to clear up.

And sitting in front of her was a small, yellow-and-black-colored mechanical ape, just like the little lion she saw earlier.

"Thank you for saving me, but w-who...who are you?"

 _ **"I am the Ape Zord, alliance: the Samurai Power Rangers,"**_ came a female voice from the mechanical ape. _**"Now, please, let me explain why I am here."**_

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 _ **City Square, Panorama City, California**_

Action Commander Tooya snuck through a gap with an army of Marauders behind him. "Go on! Everybody, have fun!" Tooya ordered to his men.

The Marauders with him quickly complied and went on to attacking innocent civilians.

"I wonder where those four Rangers are," Tooya contemplated. "This should get their attention!"

And Tooya yelled in glee, as he destroyed two rows of cars in a giant explosion.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Abandoned House, Keller Forest, Panorama City, California**

 _ **"The Nighlock are an ancient enemy from Japan, four centuries ago. I am the Ape Zord, the holder of the Yellow Samurai powers. There are five core Rangers, the Yellow being one of them, and six auxiliary Rangers. The Nighlock use the pain and misery from the humans to raise the Sanzu River, in order to enable them to escape the Sanzu River. This must not happen."**_ Emily nodded.

The old man Ji, from earlier, had explained the same thing.

"I understand."

 _ **"You can back out now,"**_ Ape said. _**"But once you say**_ _'yes'_ _ **, there is no turning back. You must be willing to stand by your team and fight the Nighlock with all of your heart."**_

Was this little ape really choosing her as the Yellow Samurai ranger?

"I understand," Emily repeated. "And I accept."

 _ **"Very well,"**_ Ape replied, before jumping at Emily and engulfing the girl in a bright yellow light. _**"And don't worry. I'll be with you, every step of the way."**_

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square, Panorama City, California**

Tooya enjoyed the screams of the innocent people he and his Marauders were attacking, but he didn't like the voice that commanded, "That's enough, Nighlock!" so much.

Tooya turned around, and sure enough there stood the four Samurai Rangers _**(the exact colors Octoroo had mentioned: Red, Blue, Pink, and Green)**_.

"Oh, come on! Who are you punks?" Tooya demanded.

Red hooked up his Power Disk to his sword. _ **"Samurai Fire, Power Ranger Red!"**_

Blue did the same, _**"Samurai Water, Power Ranger Blue!"**_

As did Pink, _**"Samurai Wind, Power Ranger Pink!"**_

As well as Green, _**"Samurai Forest, Power Ranger Green!"**_

 _ **"Rangers Together, Samurai Forever!"**_ The four announced, completing the rollcall.

"Ha! You four punks don't stand a chance against me! Without your fifth teammate, you'll fall like a bunch of stones!" Tooya taunted.

"Well then, it's a good thing their fifth teammate is right here, isn't it?" An unfamiliar female voice called out.

The four Samurai Rangers already there turned and witnessed, in awe, _**(sure enough)**_ the Yellow Samurai Ranger _**(entirely morphed)**_ walking towards. When she came into Tooya's view, the Action Commander began freaking out.

"A-And, who are you?!" He demanded to know.

Underneath the yellow mask with the black kanji for earth on it, Emily's eyes lowered in determination, as she also hooked up her back Power Disk to her Spin Sword. _**"Samurai Earth, Power Ranger Yellow!"**_

"To hell with General Dayu's warnings, Marauders, destroy them!" Tooy commanded, and his army of Marauders charged forward.

 _ **"And now, this is when you fight!"**_ Ape Zord whispered to Emily, who was caught off guard by her four teammates charging as well.

"Oh, right!" And Emily charged forward as well, joining her four teammates in battle.

On the stairs, Red struck down a Marauder on his right, before block one's sword behind him and striking him down, both actions at the same time.

Blue had run forward, striking down Marauders left and right, before leaping forward and kicking one in the chest and continuing his previous actions.

Emily found herself fighting the Marauders a lot easier now. She knew it was because of Ape Zord's power, but still. It felt really nice to not be so helpless when protecting people.

"You okay there?" Blue asked her. Emily suspected that it was because she was obviously the new one, so she was not offended.

"You kiddin'?" Emily grabbed one Marauder's sword and pulled him back, before striking him and all the others around her down. "Just like chopping down weeds back home! Hyah!" Emily struck down another one, before peering over the edge of the ledge she was standing to check and see how Green was doing.

Green was on his knees, but he was using parkour and along with sword skills to get an edge on the Marauders surrounding him. "Oh man! I'm really getting my workout for the day!" But he was handling it just fine.

Pink lept up and landed gracefully in front of one Marauder before striking him and his friend down. After sending a kick to one, her sword landed in another Marauder right behind her. She slowly backed up before striking him down as well.

Red looked up from his fighting just in time to see archers notching their arrows, pulling back, and releasing them. He blocked as many of them as he could with his sword, and he even caught one.

But Blue jumped over the Marauders and began to cut them down one by one.

And one by one, the five Rangers regrouped.

"Man, they're not kidding around today," Green exclaimed.

"Yeah, there's a lot more than usual," Pink agreed.

"Because Master Xandred must have reawakened," Red explained.

"It's okay," Blue said. "As long as we all work together, we'll be fine."

 _ **"He's right!"**_ Ape Zord suddenly said, catching all of the Rangers' attention, from Emily's shoulders. _**"Master, since all Core Five Rangers have been reunited, the personal weapons have been unlocked!"**_

"Really?" Yellow asked. "We have personal weapons too?"

"We sure do. Watch and follow, Yellow," Red replied, before spinning the black Power Disk hooked to his Spin Sword. _**"Fire Smasher!"**_ He then hooked up his red Lion Disk up to the giant red sword he now carried in place of his Spin Sword.

The other four Rangers quickly ducked as Red swung his giant sword around, cutting down all the Marauders that surrounded them. They then watched as Red's Fire Smasher easily enabled him to take out more Marauders than before.

"Wow," Emily commented. She knew Red was amazing, but now that she was actually seeing him in action, she knew she could never be able to actually catch up with him, skill-wise, or the others, for that matter.

"We're not doing anything just standing here," Blue made a valid point. "We have to help him. Let's go!"

"Right!" And the other three followed.

Blue spun his black Power Disk. _**"Hydro Bow!"**_ He hooked up his blue Dragon Disk to it. Blue then blocked Marauder attacks left and right, before pulling back the lever on his Hydro Bow and letting it go, unleashing a load of arrows and destroying his group of foot soldiers.

Pink spun her black Power Disk to reveal her own weapon. _**"Sky Fan!"**_ After hooking up her pink Turtle Disk, she used her Fan to unleash the power of air to aid her in easily taking down her group as well.

Emily spun her black Power Disk. _**"Earth Slicer!"**_ After hooking up her yellow Ape Disk, Emily charged, using her giant shuriken to block attacks and counterattack like she would with her Spin Sword. After blocking several swords from above her, while she was kneeling, Emily spun, eventually standing, and then threw her shuriken, allowing her to easily take out her own group too.

She caught her Earth Slicer with ease, and she smiled to herself, proud of herself.

Green's sword was knocked out of his hands. "Hey!" He yelled before leaping forward and catching his sword and spinning his black Power Disk. _**"Forest Spear!"**_ Hooking up his green Bear Disk allowed his spear to gain a blade. The extended handle of his spear allowed him to block attacks more easily. "Spin cycle, sayonara!" He cried after swinging his spear around three times, easily destroying his own group as well.

Red cut down his last group Marauders with a fire attack from his Fire Smasher before facing at the Nighlock Tooya.

"Like you still have a chance against me!" Tooya taunted, before firing energy blasts at Red, who easily blocked them all with his Fire Smasher.

Red slammed his Fire Smasher into Tooya's chest, shoving him back, before kicking him in the stomach. Tooya stumbled back, caught off guard by Red's upward strike, which sent Tooya backwards, onto and out over a car.

"Hey, guess what?" Tooya asked, before breaking a window of the nearest car and pushing it towards Red. "Your ride's here!"

But Red easily sliced the car coming at him full speed in half, and both halves exploded behind him.

One more strike knocked Tooya's daggers out of his hands, and Red caught Tooya's torso with the Fire Smasher, pushing him backwards into a concrete wall. Red then turned around, gaining enough momentum to initiaze the final strike against Tooya.

The Fire Smasher delivered quite the blow, and Tooya had disappeared in another giant explosion.

The Fire Smasher turned back into Red's Spin Sword, just as Emily caught up with him, her Earth Slicer in hand

"Wow," she whispered, once again. Red really was incredible.

"We did it!" Green exclaimed, he and Pink rejoining Emily and Red. "Aren't I amazing?"

"Please, you barely pulled it off," Pink sassed at him. "But, yeah, for our first time as a team, we did good."

"That was amazing, sir," Blue stepped in front of Emily and said, kneeling in front of Red, as the two also rejoined the team. "You truly are a master Samurai."

"Thanks, but we're not done," Red explained to Emily. "Each Nighlock as two forms. You saw the first. Now get ready for the Mega-Monster."

Out of a cloud of fire, Tooya had soon grown to building size. "Fe-fi-fo-fum, time to crush some crush Ranger bums!"

"Move!" Red called out, as the five narrowly dodged giant Tooya's attack.

"Woah! How do we fight him now?" Emily asked, up on her knees to get a better view at their enemy.

"Our Folding Zords," Blue replied, almost hitting Pink and Green both while unsheathing his sword. He showed the other three his Dragon Zord. "They are the embodiment of our powers, yes, but if we use our Symbol Power, we can enlargen them to be big enough to fight him." Kevin showed his folded-up Dragon Zord to the other three.

"He's right," Red confirmed, stepping in front of them. "Follow my lead. _**Samuraizer! Lion Folding Zord, Ready!**_ "

With the kanji for _'super'_ , Lion had soon grown almost the size of Tooya. Red disappeared inside of Lion, ready to fight.

"We're right behind you!" Blue said, he, Pink, and Green, using aura from their own bodies to enlarge their own Folding Zords _**(because apparently, only Red had a 'Samuraizer')**_. Emily quickly followed their lead.

 _ **"Dragon Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Turtle Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Bear Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ape Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ready!"**_

Once inside the cockpit, Emily quickly observed her new surroundings. She was still in her regular spandex _**(her belt was a little different, but not much else)**_. The slot for her Spin Sword was at her side, and the way to control her Folding Zord, she had a feeling, was to use her own physical energy combined with her Symbol Power _**(it was apparently called)**_ to control her zord naturally. Emily readied herself, and charged along with her other teammates.

"Ooo, color-coded target practice!" Tooya exclaimed, before firing at them with his dagger-guns.

"Here goes!" Lion leapt up and struck at Tooya, but no damage was dealt.

"Bad kitty!" Tooya taunted, striking at Lion with his daggers.

Lion roared, as Blue said, "Don't worry, Red! We're here to help! Take him from the right, Yellow!"

"You got it!" Emily said, before motioning Ape to leap up and repeatedly punch at Tooya. Ape then jumped back, swinging on a bridge between two buildings and landing on top of the building behind those two. "Time to wipe that smile right off your skirt!" She then motioned Ape to fold back up into a triangle and roll down the side of the building she was on, and Ape did so, landing right on top of Tooya, successfully disarming him.

"My turn!" Pink said, motioning Turtle to fold back into a circle and spin around to create a little tornado.

But Tooya bonked Turtle on the top of her head, sending Pink straight to the groun and into Tooya's skirt-mouth.

"Oh no, I'm stuck!"

"Hang on, I'm coming!" Green cried out. _**"Bear Folding Zord: Mauling Mode!"**_ Bear quickly got to work pounding and scratching Tooya. "Spit her out, Skirt-breath!"

Tooya picked up the Bear Zord, who simply converted back its square shape, surprising Tooya and making him drop Bear, right on Tooya's foot. Fortunately, this caused him to also release Mia.

"Thank you!" Pink said.

"No problemo!" Green replied.

Blue used Pink and Green rolling away as a distraction, quickly using Dragon, in hexagon mode, to hit Tooya in the head, before reverting back to dragon form. _**"Dragon Splash!"**_ Blue fire came out of Dragon's mouth, quickly hitting Tooya and successfully disarming him and making him vulnerable for Red.

"Time to end this," Red said. _**"Lion Folding Zord: Pentagonal Fury!"**_

Lion landed on the other side of Tooya, after a fiery attack. The team watched as Tooya exploded once more, for the last time.

 _ **"Samurai Rangers, Victory is Ours,"**_ Red said, officially ending the battle.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square, Panorama City, California**

Emily, still morphed, was surprised when her four teammates began to walk away form the scene without another word.

"Hey, wait!" She called out to them, successfully catching their attention as they turned back around to face her. "We are teammates now. Shouldn't we get to, you know, know each other better?"

"Sorry, but I like my personal time," Green replied, surprising her.

"Same here," Blue said. "We really are sorry."

"Yeah," Pink agreed. "I couldn't stand it if people knew my real identity. I have too much to lose."

"You heard 'em," Red said, as if it were that simple, but also apologetically.

"Fine, but you only said reasons for yourselves," Emily replied, before de-morphing, revealing her curly, blonde hair, hazel eyes, and yellow cardigan, white tank top, and blue jeans.

"You–!" Green was apparently surprised at her civilian identity, as were the other three.

"Emily Shields," she introduced herself. "I look forward to working with you in the future."

Without another word, Emily turned on her heel and walked away, leaving behind four very flustered and surprised teammates, her head spinning from the day's events.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _ **Original Shinkenger Episode: Act 1**_

 _ **Original PRS Episode: Origins, Part 1/Call of the Red Ranger**_

 **Note: All I added in references to Dino Charge** _ **(The Griffin Family)**_ **and to Ninja Storm** _ **(Dustin Brooks)**_ **, because they just fit so perfectly in those situations. Besides, I like it when Rangers are headcanon-ed as related to each other. I also took out some stuff, like the core five Samurai being descendants of a long line of Samurai Rangers** _ **(as much as I liked that from the original)**_ **, and the Mega Mode for the Zord cockpits.**

A/N: Do review, please. **If you guys have any ideas you want me to consider adding, please PM me.** A preview for the next chapter:

 _ **Season 1, Episode 2:**_ _"Divide and Conquer"_

 _"Emily revisits the house in the forest, prompting her to run into another new face. Meanwhile, she's also having trust issues with the four who are supposed to be her teammates."_


	2. 2: Divide and Conquer

A/N: I hereby present to you all my own version (yes, another one) of Power Rangers: Samurai. It does have a much darker theme to it than Saban's version (which I do not, as you can obviously tell by my other PR stories). There were some flaws, yes, I'm still going to use some terms you are familiar with.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Power Rangers Samurai or Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. I just own most of the plot and the characters and things you don't recognize from the original version.

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _"Emily revisits the house in the forest, prompting her to run into another new face. Meanwhile, she's also having trust issues with the four who are supposed to be her teammates."_

 **Better Together**

 _ **Power Rangers: Samurai REDO**_

 **LAST TIME ON** _ **POWER RANGERS: SAMURAI**_

 _"Are you sure about this?" Riley Griffin asked her the next morning._

 _"Positive," was Emily's reply. "I need answers, Riles. I mean, why do I keep dreaming about this house? And why this one specifically?"_

 **"There's the bus, Hun. Be safe. I love you." Mrs. Shields gave her daughter a kiss on the forehead and a hug, before reluctantly letting her go.**

 **Emily gave the Griffins another hug goodbye, before stepping on the bus, the first step away from home.**

 _Once the two were out of range, the Ranger turned to Ji and asked, "I saw her fight the Marauders, and she's wearing a yellow cardigan. Could she be...?"_

 _"The Lion Zord will tell us when the Ape Zord has found someone to lend her power to," Jii advised. "Until that happens, you must only worry about your three other fellow Samurai: the Blue, the Pink, and the Green. You four must unite if you are to stand any chance against Master Xandred when he awakens, and you all must be prepared to welcome the Yellow Samurai with open arms when they awaken as well."_

 **"You can back out now," Ape said. "But once you say 'yes', there is no turning back. You must be willing to stand by your team and fight the Nighlock with all of your heart."**

 **Was this little ape really choosing her as the Yellow Samurai ranger?**

 **"I understand," Emily repeated. "And I accept."**

 _"Hey, wait!" Emily called out to them, successfully catching their attention as they turned back around to face her. "We are teammates now. Shouldn't we get to, you know, know each other better?"_

 _"Sorry, but I like my personal time," Green replied, surprising her._

 _"Same here," Blue said. "We really are sorry."_

 _"Yeah," Pink agreed. "I couldn't stand it if people knew my real identity. I have too much to lose."_

 _"You heard 'em," Red said, as if it were that simple, but also apologetically._

 _"Fine, but you only said reasons for yourselves," Emily replied, before de-morphing, revealing her curly, blonde hair, hazel eyes, and yellow cardigan, white tank top, and blue jeans._

 _"You–!" Green was apparently surprised at her civilian identity, as were the other three._

 _"Emily Shields," she introduced herself. "I look forward to working with you in the future."_

 _Without another word, Emily turned on her heel and walked away, leaving behind four very flustered and surprised teammates, her head spinning from the day's events._

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Season 1, Episode 2:** _Divide and Conquer_

 **Keller Forest, Panorama City, California**

 _ **April 25, 2014**_

It was the next day, at approximately 8:34 in the morning, back in the forest where the old house was. Emily still had a lot of things on her mind, most of them from yesterday, especially regarding those four teammates of hers.

Emily was a generally nice person, always giving them a smile, even if they didn't return it.

 _But with these four?_

They were teammates. They were supposed to be a team. She respected their opinions and their choices, yet they didn't seem too happy to see her.

But that wasn't what was bothering her.

It was the fact that they were selfish in their reasons for wanting to keep their identities a secret. Pink wanted to avoid the pain of possibly loosing someone or something she loved _**(with no mention of wanting the person or item to survive because she cared about them unconditionally)**_. Blue and Green liked their personal time. And Red didn't even give her a reason _**(even if he was the only one who gave any sympathy whatsoever)**_.

She showed them who she was because they were a team. If they were to protect this city and all of the beautiful people in it, they needed to be a team.

It angered her so much, it wasn't funny. They all seemed so _selfish_!

Of course, Emily had no room to judge them as harshly as she was. She had come here to Panorama City for a selfish reason too, one could say. She was trying to out why she was dreaming about an abandoned house in the forest.

Ever since Panorama City police sent Serena's stuff back to her ranch in Montana, ever since Emily was allowed to keep her older sister's old wooden flute, that house was always trapped in her dream.

 _ **"Run, they're coming!"**_ Emily heard the voice again. _**"Hurry up, they're gaining on us!"**_

Emily snapped her head around, expecting angry, hungry wolves behind her.

And sure enough, there they were.

Wait a minute, the voice she heard sounded really familiar.

 _ **"Serena?" Little Emily spoke up from the older girl's doorway. Light from the hallway shone through small gap the little girl made by holding the bedroom door open.**_

 _ **Serena's voice was coated with sleep. "Another nightmare, Emmy?" Emily nodded. Serena motioned the seven-year-old to come over and sit on her bed. "What was this one about?"**_

 _ **"Umm...I was taking a really im-impo-imporan...?"**_

 _ **"Important?" Serena offered.**_

 _ **Emily nodded and continued, "Yeah, important test, and I was really scared I wouldn't get an A, even though I knew everything, and when I didn't, the floor shook and the walls broke down. And I got crushed by a big rock."**_

 _ **"An earthquake?" Emily nodded. "You don't have any important tests any time soon. It's summertime." Serena never really knew what to make of her little sister's nightmares, and obviously, neither did Emily. So she simply said, "Don't worry about it, okay? It's just your imagination running wild."**_

 _ **If only that were true, because the very next afternoon was the day that Sheriff Shields, their dad, was killed trying to stop a robbery at the bank downtown.**_

That voice warning her about the wolves was Serena's voice, her older sister's. Why? Why was Serena talking to her? Why was Serena telling her to run away? What did it all mean?

A growl from the wolves brought her attention back to animals wanted to kill her. By now, wolves had blocked the only path she knew to the abandoned house, so that way was out of the question.

Emily slowly knelt down, grabbed a large rock, and threw it as a distraction, so she could _**(hopefully)**_ get away unseen. She didn't see the rock hit its target. She didn't stick around to find out.

She just ran and ran, getting scratched in the face and arms by stray branches. What made her escape even more painful and impatient was the large rock she slammed into and apparently knocked over.

"Oww..." Emily moaned, looking up just in time to see that the large rock she ran into was no rock at all.

It was a man, dressed a red shirt, blue jeans, and a black denim jacket, late-teens, early-twenties, with ash-blonde/brunette hair, and when he opened his eyes, Emily found them to a very beautiful blue.

Meaning it was a human being that she had knocked over _**(a handsome one at that)**_.

So, despite the wolves behind her, she quickly got up to her knees and offered him a hand up. "I'm so sorry! Are you okay?!"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Emily felt her face turn red at the sound his quiet, baritone voice. "How about you? You've been scratched up."

Emily's heart jumped at him addressing her, but it then beat harder upon remembering the wolves, and especially when she saw a wolf behind him.

"I-I'm fine, we have to get out of here–!"

He interrupted her. "You sure? You seem really shaken up. Wait, what? Why?"

"Wolves! Behind you!"

He turned around, and turned back to her, saying, "There's nothing there." This made her face drop. "Are you sure you're okay?" He repeated.

Emily's voice had disappeared, as she looked around. The wolves were still around, still there. They weren't growling, not anymore, probably because this man was here. She looked behind her.

 _Did this guy really not see the wolves?_

Something then dawned on her, before she turned back to him, saying, "Y-Yeah. Must've been my imagination."

His gaze was sympathetic _**(Had he gone through the same thing? Did he have a friend who did?)**_. "You seem really shaken up," he repeated. "How about I take you for some coffee?"

He and Emily locked eyes again. "S-Sure, I-I'd like that."

As he helped her to her feet, he asked, "What would you like?"

"Hot chai tea, please," her voice was quiet.

"Me too," and she smiled, before following him out of the forest and back to the city.

It had dawned on her that maybe it was just her imagination. Because, if only she could see the wolves, what was the point of getting this guy _**(or anybody else)**_ to believe her?

Who knew? Maybe the house was imaginary too.

 _In that case, why did she come here?_

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Cool Bean Cafe, City Square, Panorama City, California**

Emily had discovered very quickly that what she liked the most about this guy was how similar they were.

Both had ordered hot chai tea and a cinnamon roll to munch on, and had suggested they sit outside, where it was less loud and crowded. Not to mention, both were kind, gentle, and cared about other human beings so much, they would die for them.

 _She also liked how nice and understanding he was._

"I'm Emily Shields. Thank you for the tea, and the cinnamon roll, Mister...uhh?" Emily paused.

"Jayden," he replied. "Jayden Shiba. And please, don't add the Mister. Mr. Shiba is my father."

"Shiba's Japanese, isn't it?" Jayden nodded, but Emily didn't have to continue.

Jayden explained, "My dad was half-Japanese. His mother was full-Caucasian."

"Oh," Emily understood. "Three-fourths of my family hail from the lovely state of Montana. The other quarter has spread out all around the US. I'm a country girl."

"I know. I could tell by your accent," Jayden replied, taking a sip of his tea.

Emily had braced herself for a dumb blonde or a countryside-bashing joke. Or both. But Jayden had said nothing, only explaining that he could tell she was from the country by her accent.

And she smiled.

"So, why were you in the forest anyways?" Jayden asked, as Emily took a sip of her own tea.

Emily's heart jumped. This was the topic she wanted to avoid. But she answered anyways, "Well, I..." She quickly lowered her gaze to her tea to avoid his eyes.

What was the point of telling him about the house when it was most likely just a figment of her imagination?

"I was taking a morning walk," she quickly improvised _**(as well as fibbed)**_.

"Me too," and unlike hers, she could tell he was telling the truth. "I always do. It's a good habit to get into."

She nodded in agreement, looking back up at his eyes, hoping her smile was obviously fake. But before she could say anything else, the guy in green from yesterday, Mike, had walked up to the table. "Hey, Emily. Hello, other guy."

Emily slapped her smile back on. "Hey, Mike. This is Jayden Shiba."

"Nice to meet you," Jayden said, and Mike nodded, thinking the same, as they shook hands.

"Would you like to join us?" Emily asked. "We're just talking."

Mike glanced over at Jayden for his approval, who nodded. So Mike smiled and sat next at their round table, next to Emily, who just noticed two more familiar faces approaching the table.

"Hey, Kev, Mia!" Mike, apparently, had noticed them too.

"It's Kevin," Kevin, the guy in blue from yesterday, bit back. Mike snickered.

"I know. I just love bugging you," Mike said, before turning to Mia. "Hey, today your day off?"

Mia nodded, "Yep. Thankfully. The day care kids are a lot of work sometimes. And don't worry, David's doing just fine with the older kids. Especially, the gamers."

Mike shrugged, a smirk on his face. "Well, that's my little brother for you. Gaming just runs in the family."

Emily took a deep breath and spoke up, "Hey, you two. This is Jayden Shiba."

"We know," Kevin said. "Well, at least, I do. He and I went to high school together."

"Oh, yeah, Chess Club," Jayden said, memories coming back to him.

"Chess Club?" Mia asked, her voice sounding like she was getting ready to scold Kevin. "You told me you two met in History Freshman year."

"Well," Kevin quickly explained, "yes and no. History was our first class together. Chess Club was when we officially introduced ourselves."

"Oh. Jayden and I officially met in-"

"English," Jayden finished. "Sophomore year. We did a project together, and got a A-."

Mia nodded, she and Kevin sitting down at the table as well, as Emily asked Mia, "How did you and Kevin meet?"

"Kindergarten, art project," Mia replied.

"So, you all know each other?" Emily asked, feeling like she was the odd-one out. _**(She usually was.)**_

"Absolutely," Mike said. "Kevin and Mia are childhood friends, and I know them through my little brother David going to daycare, and they know Jayden through high school."

Emily couldn't tell that her smile had faded, until Jayden asked, "It's okay. You're not intruding."

Emily nodded, her real smile not quite back yet. "It's not that." _**Lie.**_ "My high school life wasn't the best." _**Truth.**_ "And you're all talking about it like it's the best thing in the world."

"Oh, we're sorry," Kevin said, the four of them with sympathetic faces. "If it makes you feel any better, people liked to pick on me because I was Black."

"Me too," Mia said, "because I was a _'stereotypical'_ Asian."

"I'm a gamer," Mike explained "and at my high school, gamers were considered nerds."

"I was apparently a hotspot for mean words," Jayden said.

Kevin cut in, "Because no words could get through to you. They would just bounce off of you."

Emily loved these four. She secretly wished her Ranger teammates were more like them.

"Hey, give that back!" This immediately caught Emily's attention. She quickly turned her head to see a couple of little boys have a tug-of-war with a little, blonde-haired girl over a white-stuffed-bunny. "It's mine!"

The bunny was ripped from the girl's hands by one of the boys, who made an _'L'_ sign with his right hand and placed it on his forehead. "Loser! You said we could keep it!"

"No, I didn't!" The girl yelled back. "You're a meanie!"

 _ **"Momma!" Little seven-year-old Emily cried to her mom, the minute she walked in the door after getting home from school that day.**_

 _ **"What is it, Sweetie?" Mrs. Shields asked. "What's wrong?"**_

 _ **Tears were pouring down the girl's face. "I brought Hoppy to show-and-tell like you said, and I put in my backpack, but when I got back from recess, he was gone!"**_

 _ **Hoppy was Emily's favorite stuffed toy, a little white rabbit, with a yellow boy around its neck. It was really special to her, especially now since Mr. Shields had been dead for about a month now...**_

"Hey!" Emily yelled, stopping the fight between the kids, her sense of justice elevated _**(just like yesterday, when she had seen those Marauders)**_. The boys stopped immediately _**(probably thinking they were in trouble)**_ , and Emily got out of her chair and walked to the trio of kids. "Give her back the rabbit."

Jayden, Kevin, Mia, and Mike noticed that Emily's voice was incredibly stern, like she was incredibly fed up with what she _**(and others)**_ had just seen.

"Now," Emily ordered. And she watched as the boys fearfully gave the girl the rabbit back. She then kneeled in front of the kids, addressing the two boys, "You two don't have any parents, do you?"

Her voice wasn't stern anymore, the other four noticed. It was gentle, but still a little hard, because she wanted to get her point across.

The two boys nodded.

"What happened?" Emily asked, feeling like she already knew the answer.

"Dad was arrested for assault," one of the two boys replied quietly. The other boy nodded, as his brother continued, "and Mom liked to drink and hit us."

"I see," Emily said, her feeling being correct. "You picking on this girl is exactly how your parents started out, as bullies. If you don't want to end up like them, then...try to find the good in people, and stop people when they're doing bad things. Stand up for justice. Don't run from it. Maybe then, you'll end up like the superheroes you read in comic books. Okay?"

The two boys both cracked a smile and nodded, and Emily turned to the girl.

"What's your name?" She gently asked, her voice tone now soft and sympathetic.

"Hannah."

"Hi, Hannah. My name is Emily. What's your bunny's name?"

"Mr. Hop," Hannah replied.

"Mr. Hop is very important to you, isn't he?"

Hannah sadly nodded. "Got him from Grandpa."

"I used to have one exactly like yours, from my dad, but I lost him one day, and I never got him back. So, never, ever lose him. Okay?" Emily sent the girl a little smile of comfort.

Hannah smiled back and nodded, hugging Mr. Hop closer to her chest. The two boys turned to her and one said, "We're really sorry for trying to take him."

"It's okay," Hannah said, as Emily stood up and watched the three kids walk off, back to their parents/guardians.

When she sat back down at the table, Kevin spoke up and said, "Wow, that was..."

"Amazing," Mike finished.

Emily's voice was quiet as she replied, "My dad was the town Sheriff, and he was killed trying to stop a robbery when I was 7. When I turned 10, I learned what justice really meant. So I vowed to myself that I would follow in his footsteps, and if I went down the same way he did, well...that's fine with me."

"Not just that," Mia said. "You actually managed to make them best friends," she nodded over to the three kids having fun. "How? I'm a daycare teacher. I should to know how to do that."

"I believe everyone has the ability to be friends with each other. It's just-maybe if we all weren't so selfish, the world would be a better place."

"I like the way you think," Jayden said. "I agree."

But Emily's words really made the other four think.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

Xandred took a huge gulp of his medicine, before complaining, "This medicine is making me feel better, but that music is giving me a splitting headache!"

"OO-ah-oo," Octoroo replied, turning from his books to Xandred.

"Tch," Dayu muttered. "Everybody's a critic."

Xandred shoved a Marauder out of the way, and poured out his medicine himself. "If only we could get this Sanzu River to rise and flood the human world, we could sail into their cities and rule their pathetic world!"

"Oo-ah-oo," Octoroo said, "Boss, take a look. There's something interesting in this book."

"Spit it out, Octoroo," Xandred ordered.

"Legend says that everytime something really bad happens on Earth, the Sanzu River's water lever rises. So if we scare those humans, their tears will flow into our River and we could sail out of here!"

"Sounds fun," Dayu said. "Looks like that Noodle Face can actually use his noodle."

"That plan might work," Xandred said. "I'm glad I thought of it. Scorponic! Get over here!"

A monster popped up out of the river. "Master, you rang?" He asked when he reached the ship.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Room 215, Paradise Hotel, Panorama City, California**

"Ape?" Emily asked her Zord later the day.

 _ **"Yes?"**_ Ape quickly morphed into Animal Mode from Defense Mode in order to talk to her master.

"Do you think I should go back to the forest house? I mean, if it really is all just my imagination, then what's the point?"

 _ **"The house is real,"**_ Ape informed her. _**"I found you there, remember? I could see everything you could."**_

"Yeah, but you're a Zord. You have special sight, don't you?" Emily's head and heart were both filled to the brim with doubt.

Ape couldn't argue with that, so she replied, _**"Maybe the house and the wolf are invisible to others and only we can see them."**_

She hadn't thought about that. "Maybe. But, do you think I should go back?"

 _ **"It is your choice, Master,"**_ Ape replied. _**"Either way, I am your Zord, and I will always be with you, no matter what."**_

Emily's mind turned back to Hannah and what she told the other four _**(Jayden, Kevin, Mia, and Mike)**_. "Hannah may get attacked by the Nighlock if she hasn't already. I think I should focus my time and attention on the Nighlock, so that people don't get hurt."

 _ **"A wise choice, Master."**_ Then Ape beeped loudly. _**"Master, A Nighlock is attacking downtown! We must hurry!"**_

Emily practically grabbed Ape and her key card, and ran out the door, closing and locking it behind her.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Oakwood Plaza, Panorama City, California**

Action Commander Scorponic had sent his Marauders out to do whatever they liked.

"Move your tails!" He said, as he attacked with his own. "I'm here!" He turned to his Marauders as people ran away from the scene screaming. "Don't attack them so quickly! They sweat and squeal more if you corner them slowly!" He stumbled back when he was attacked by the Lion Folding Zord. "Tch! You buzzing tin can!"

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the Red Ranger catch his Zord. The Red was joined a second later by Blue, Green, and Pink.

"Attack!" Scorponic ordered.

Red attacked the Marauder in front of him and before attacking another behind him and then one behind him again when his back was turned.

Blue walked down the sidewalk, attacking each Marauder that stood in his way. After spinning his black Power Disk, _**"Hydro Bow!"**_ he used the said weapon to jump off the ledge he was on and shoot the rest with blue energy arrows.

 _ **"Sky Fan!"**_ Pink used her Fan to strike down three Marauders before using it to create a giant wind storm to take care of the rest.

Emily came upon people running away from the scene. So she directed them to the buildings nearby. "Go on! Get out of here!" She said.

 _ **"Forest Spear!"**_ Three simple waves with Green's Spear and they were all gone.

 _ **"Fire Smasher!"**_ After taking care of the Marauders he was surrounded by, Red noticed Scorponic creating another explosion. "Woah!" He then ran to meet the Nighlock halfway.

Meanwhile, after making sure no one else was in sight, Emily used the Ape Zord _**(in Defense Mode)**_ to morph.

 _ **"Earth Slicer!"**_ And with her giant shuriken, Emily charged in.

Red had gotten into a sword fight, Emily noticed, with Scorponic. Red was also using his Fire Smasher to block and attack the Nighlock.

But Emily focused on the Marauders that had followed her. After striking two down, she then threw it, taking out the rest.

But her heart skipped a beat _**(in fear)**_ , when her shuriken flew past red, almost hitting him, catching him off guard and allowing Scorponic to strike him backwards into a concrete wall. Emily watched in horror as Red fell to the ground, his Fire Smasher turning back into his Spin Sword on the way.

"Oh, no!" Emily cried out before running towards Red. "I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" She asked him.

"What a lovely display of teammates not getting along," Scorponic taunted, before charging up his energy tail attack.

Emily quickly glanced up, seeing Scorponic about to attack. "I'll cover you!" She said, quickly getting up off her knees and rushing forward to meet the Nighlock's attack.

 _Without any kind of weapon in her hand._

Blue, Green, and Pink saw this and rushed over to push or pull her out of the way.

 _ **"Whirlwind Scythe Attack!"**_ Scorponic smashed his energy tail down, causing a huge explosion where the Rangers were.

When the smoke cleared, he saw all five Rangers on the ground, with the Yellow Ranger de-morphed, obviously the one who took the brunt of the attack.

"Haha!" Scorponic said, before walking off. "Like taking candy from a baby. Hahaha!"

Red struggled to stand up and mentally rejoiced when he did. "Are you guys okay?" he asked.

Blue coughed. "Y-Yeah."

"I'm fine," Green said, almost struggling to speak.

"Me too," Pink replied.

But Emily coughed loudly, catching the four's attention.

"Emily!" Pink announced, she and Green crawling over to wear Emily was.

When Emily opened her eyes, she first noticed the rubble all around them. Second, she noticed her white sweater, and then the white gloves of the other four Rangers. So, only she had de-morphed from the attack. She thirdly, and most of all, noticed the pain she was in. The other four didn't appear to be in as much pain as she was in.

Which would explain why she was angry at the fact that Scorponic was still out there, causing havoc, and they were still here, with her.

"Emily, are you okay?" Pink asked.

Emily only coughed, before Pink helped her stand. "Don't worry about me. The Nighlock's still here!" She motioned her head toward the said monster a few feet away from them, using his tail to caused more damage to the city.

"Worry about yourself," Blue said. "You need to rest. We all do."

Emily's gaze, however, lowered in anger and determination. She shrugged off Pink's arm rather harshly before rushing forward and sending a kick towards a Marauder. Once she did, the rest of the group turned on her, but Emily took half of them out with a crescent kick and the other half with a sweeping kick to their ankles.

The other four Rangers finally realized by she was so mad at them when Emily rushed over a couple feet, reached down, and pulled out of the rubble a little stuffed bunny.

 _Mr. Hop._

"Hannah!" Emily called out, slight fear evident in her voice.

"Emily!" The Rangers were surprised when the little girl called back.

Emily noticed Hannah's location and rushed over to where the girl was, unfortunately catching Scorponic's attention too.

"Ah, so there are people here still alive!" Scorponic taunted, prompting Emily to step in front of Hannah protectively. "Too bad!" Scorponic raised his sword, and Emily turned and knelt in front of Hannah, tightly hugging her.

But Emily never felt the Nighlock's sword hit her.

She glanced behind her, back at the Nighlock, whose attacked, she noticed, had been blocked by the Red Ranger's Spin Sword.

"Get her out of here!" Red ordered.

This was an order Emily was all too happy to obey, feeling relief that one of the other four felt the same way about being a Ranger as she did.

"Emily!" She turned her head in the direction her name was called in, and noticed Blue, Green, and Pink motioning her to bring Hannah over to where they were, with a blonde-haired woman. "Over here!"

"Hannah!" The woman called out.

"Mommy!" Hannah called back, and Emily immediately understood.

After mother and daughter had been reunited, they were ordered off the battlefield and out to safety by Pink.

"I don't care if you guys want to reveal your identities or not," Emily told them. "What I do care about is if you let your reasons for hiding your faces get in the way of protecting all those who stand in harm's way, forced to or not."

"You're right," Blue told Emily, after the three were quiet for a minute. "We're Rangers."

"We can't be worried about each other. Not when innocent peoples' lives are on the line," Pink added.

"Yeah," Green said. "We're a team. We should also be working together to protect this city."

Their attention was stolen when Red was shoved harshly to the ground by the Nighlock, who was charging up his energy tail again.

"Kick back and take a seat! _**Whirlwind Scythe Attack!**_ "

"Let's go!" Emily said, pulling out Ape Zord again, using her to morph. Emily unsheathed her sword, and the other three Rangers joined her in rushing forward, then jumping up, and all blocking the energy tail attack for one strike of their swords.

Red was already on his feet when the other four landed in front of him, before taking their places in the official line-up: Pink, Green, Red, Blue, and then Yellow.

Red held up his red Power Disk. "Let's beat him once and for all," he said, "for this city," hooking up his Disk to the hilt of his Sword and spinning, surrounding his Sword with a whirlwind of fire. _**"Lion Disk!"**_

Blue and Emily nodded. "For this city."

 _ **"Dragon Disk!"**_ Blue's Sword was surrounded by blue water.

 _ **"Ape Disk!"**_ Emily's Sword was surrounded by yelled-colored stones.

 _ **"Turtle Disk!"**_ Pink's Sword was surrounded by pink wind.

 _ **"Bear Disk!"**_ Green's Sword was surrounded by green leaves.

 _ **"Spin Sword: Quintuple Slash!"**_

"Aw, big deal!" Scorponic taunted for the last time, before the five Rangers rushed forward.

Red attacked first with fire, then Blue with water, Pink with wind, Green with forest, and finally Emily with earth.

They landed with their backs to the Nighlock, Sword points outstretched, before saluting their Swords back to their sides, Scorponic's first life finally ending in a fire ball explosion.

Blue sighed, sheathing his Sword.

"Wait a minute," Red warned, turning around to face Scorponic again, the other four turning back as well in time to see Scorponic grow to giant size.

"Don't think you've won just yet, Rangers!"

"Let's go! _**Samuraizer! Lion Folding Zord!**_ "

 _ **"Dragon Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Turtle Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Bear Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ape Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ready!"**_

And before Emily knew it, she was back in the Ape Zord cockpit.

"Here!" Scorponic said, striking the ground with his sword, creating a dust cloud. "Choke on this!"

Neither of them could see. "Uh-oh," Green commented. "Where's the turbo switch!"

"Zords alone won't be enough anymore," Red said. "We need to find a way to combine forces somehow!"

"A Zord Combination, right?" Blue asked.

"Yes," Red gave him confirmation, before receiving a call from his Samuraizer. He picked it up, saying, "Bad time, Antonio!"

 _ **"You'll thank me later, amigo!"**_ A male voice came from the other end. _**"I found a way to combine all five of your zords!"**_

"How?" Red asked.

 _ **"I'll send you the layout and the kanji."**_ A beep from his Samuraizer notified Red that 'Antonio' had done so, and Red opened the message and quickly took a look at them.

"Let's do it!" Blue was saying. _**"Zords Combine!"**_

This was what caught Jayden's attention. Well, that and the other four Zords were in Defense Mode and stacked on top of each other, Bear at the bottom, Dragon holding up Turtle, and finally Ape at the top.

"Yes, we're locked and ready!" Blue exclaimed.

"Umm..." Pink said. "Are we _supposed_ to look like this?"

"Not entirely sure," Blue replied. "Why?"

"What is that?" Scorponic asked, Lion flying around, surveying the scene. "A Ranger totem pole?"

"Well, if Totem Pole crushes Nighlock," Emily said, ever the optimist, "You bet!"

"You Ranger babies are playing with blocks?" Scorponic was still so confused, but his sarcasm had not disappeared.

"Blue, what have you done?" Red asked, still unable to believe that this had happened.

"Did I make a mistake?" Blue asked.

"Yes!" Red exclaimed. "You left me out!"

Blue turned back to his three other teammates. "Oh no! I did it wrong!"

"What's the deal?!" Green called. "Why am I the low-man on the Totem Pole?!"

But he was making the Totem Pole shake because of this.

"Woah!"

"Hey!" Emily called back. "Don't make it wobble!"

"Get ready, blockheads!" Scorponic exclaimed, raising his sword. "Because you're all about to take a tumble!" With his sword, he struck at the bottom of Dragon, making it, Turtle, and Ape all fall down on top of Bear.

Fortunately, Red had memorized the kanji this _'Antonio'_ had showed him. "How about I start it this time?"

"Rip it out, Red!" Green said, as Blue hung his head. Pink nodded in agreement.

"Yes!" Emily quietly cheered, as Red wrote, with his Samuraizer, the kanji for _'union'_.

 _ **"Zords Combine!"**_

Lion morphed into the head and torso, while Turtle and Ape had morphed into the arms, and Dragon and Bear into the legs. Dragon had also produced the helmet, which the Megazord put on, and the sword had materialized out of thin air.

 _ **"Samurai Megazord! We Are United!"**_ They all announced, all five of them in the cockpit, in their official/standard line-up.

Emily took a quick peak around the cockpit now. There was a slot in Red's stand off to his side, and he had placed a black Power disk in the said slot _**(black with a little gold shape for each of the five Folding Zords: pentagon, hexagon, circle, square, and triangle)**_. The other four did the same, each having a Disk just like his. Their personal Disks _**(like the Red Lion Disk)**_ were attacked to the hilts of their Spin Swords.

There was no slot for their Swords, and Emily had a feeling she knew why. This time, they would use their Spin Swords along with their movements, because they were controlling a Megazord _**(shaped like a person)**_ , while their Zords in general were animals.

"Sorry, guys," Blue apologized for screwing up the first time.

"It's okay," Emily said, patting his shoulder. "We've got it now."

"Stay alert!" Red ordered. "He's closing in on us!"

Scorponic charged forward at them, and all five of them _**(in perfect sync)**_ unsheathed their Swords, and when they did, so did the Megazord. _**(And Emily knew her feeling was right.)**_

 _ **"Katana Power!"**_

They clashed swords. After shoving him back, they dodged a downwards strike and then another slashing upwards at their chest. The Megazord shook upon impact with the second building, but they quickly regained their balance, before charging and struck Scorponic down, along with a third building.

"Yeah, haha!" Pink exclaimed.

"Oh, man!" Green commented. "Hope that building was insured!"

Scorponic stood back up and called for "Giant Marauders!"

"Oh, man!" Green exclaimed again. "These guys again?!"

"Attack!" Scorponic ordered.

The Megazord struck down two before the other Marauders threw chains, which caught on both of the Megazord's arms.

"Are we yanking your chain there?" Scorponic punned and laughed aloud.

"Oh no! We're stuck!" Pink informed them.

"Stay strong, stay brave!" Red urged, spinning the Red Lion Disk on the hilt of his Sword. _**"Furious Lion Howl!"**_

Lion's head, attached to the Megazord, immediately spit out fire, taking out the two Marauders in front of them.

"W-What?!" Scorponic roared with fury and confusion.

"Now!" Red ordered, and the two Megazord arms yanked up, pulling the chains with them, and taking out the rest around them. "Time to squash this scorpion."

"Time to back up and use my back-up!" Scorponic announced.

"Well, we're not backing down!" Red replied.

Scorponic stumbled backwards when the Megazord struck down the last three Marauders. Fear was evident in the Nighlock's eyes as they pointed their giant sword at him.

 _ **"Katana Power: Samurai Strike!"**_ The five announced, before bringing their swords down in a downwards slash. The Megazord did the same, striking down Scorponic.

The Megazord turned around, their back facing the explosion as Scorponic was defeated for good. The Megazord then sheathed its sword as the five Rangers inside the cockpit did the same.

The five all celebrated in their victory. _**"Samurai Rangers, Victory is Ours."**_

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Pier 8, Panorama City, California**

Emily didn't de-morph until she had come upon an empty pier, with no one in sight. Not just because of her identity as a Ranger, but mostly because she was injured and she didn't want to worry anybody.

Emily held her torso. She could feel a deep cut there as well as cuts and bruises everywhere else on her body. Her first fight turned out rather well. None of them had any injuries. At least, she didn't. She was a little sore from all the fighting she had to do, but she had come out of it just fine.

This fight was different. This fight was more lethal than the first.

"I know a place you can rest and heal up at."

Emily turned around to see Red standing.

She wanted to trust him, but...could she really?

"We won't even show our own faces to each other," Emily brought up a good point. "How do I know I can trust you?"

"Because you already do," Red replied. And Emily was confused, at least, until Red de-morphed to reveal his true face.

Then, she was surprised.

 _"Jayden?"_

"Hey, Emily," was Jayden's reply.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _ **Original Shinkenger Episode: Act 2**_

 _ **Original PRS Episode: Origins, Part 2/Rise of the Megazord**_

 **Note: Remember the Power Disk in the original series' "Shell Game", during the Megazord Battle that** _ **everyone thought was an error**_ **? That's the Disk I'm referring to and it actually does exist in Shinkenger. And** _ **Antonio**_ **makes an** _ **early debut**_ **in this? You freakin' bet.**

A/N: Do review, please. **If you guys have any ideas you want me to consider adding, please PM me.** A preview for the next chapter:

 _ **Season 1, Episode 3:**_ _"The Green Thumb"_

 _"Just who is the Green Samurai Ranger exactly? Well, Jayden and Emily are about to find out."_


	3. 3: The Green Thumb

A/N: I hereby present to you all my own version (yes, another one) of Power Rangers: Samurai. It does have a much darker theme to it than Saban's version (which I do not hate, as you can obviously tell by my other PR stories). There were some flaws, yes, and I'm still going to use some terms you are familiar with.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Power Rangers Samurai or Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. I just own most of the plot and the characters and things you don't recognize from the original version.

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _"Just who is the Green Samurai Ranger exactly? Well, Jayden and Emily are about to find out."_

 **Better Together**

 _ **Power Rangers: Samurai REDO**_

 **LAST TIME ON** _ **POWER RANGERS: SAMURAI**_

 _Emily didn't de-morph until she had come upon an empty pier, with no one in sight. Not just because of her identity as a Ranger, but mostly because she was injured and she didn't want to worry anybody._

 _Emily held her torso. She could feel a deep cut there as well as cuts and bruises everywhere else on her body. Her first fight turned out rather well. None of them had any injuries. At least, she didn't. She was a little sore from all the fighting she had to do, but she had come out of it just fine._

 _This fight was different. This fight was more lethal than the first._

 _"I know a place you can rest and heal up at."_

 _Emily turned around to see Red standing._

 _She wanted to trust him, but...could she really?_

 _"We won't even show our own faces to each other," Emily brought up a good point. "How do I know I can trust you?"_

 _"Because you already do," Red replied. And Emily was confused, at least, until Red de-morphed to reveal his true face._

 _Then, she was surprised._

 **"Jayden?"**

 _"Hey, Emily," was Jayden's reply._

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Season 1, Episode 3:** _The Green Thumb_

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

 _ **April 25, 2014**_

Jayden led a still-sore Emily _**(who was holding her injured torso)**_ to a forest _**(not the forest where the abandoned house was, thankfully)**_. When Emily came upon a large wooden gate _**(which had a symbol up at the top, the same symbol that was on the chest of her Ranger suit, on the arm of the ape zord, and on all of her Ranger gear)**_ , she turned to Jayden, who pushed open the gate with his shoulder. Once it was open, he held out his free hand, holding it open in the direction of inside the gate.

"Ladies first," he said. She smiled, nodded, and squeezed past him and through the gate.

On the other side, she was met by a house, old-fashioned and Japanese-style. There was a wooden dojo mat outside, with wooden swords on a rack off to the side, making it evident _**(and obvious)**_ that the house was built to train samurai warriors.

Jayden opened the front door and led her inside. Despite how old-fashioned it appeared to be, Emily was a little surprised to see how high-tech and modern it really was. She liked this place, especially the room they were in, where there were cushioned stools around a wooden table _**(that once again had the same insignia on it)**_.

"Why, hello there," said a voice that was unfamiliar to her.

Emily turned to see a Latino man, as tall as Jayden, wearing black denim jeans, a white t-shirt, a dark-gray plaid jacket with a hood, gold shoes, and a green-and-black scarf.

"Hi," she replied, holding out her free hand for him to shake. "Emily Shields."

"Antonio Garcia," he relied, taking her hand and shaking it. "You must be the new Yellow."

Emily nodded, as a familiar face stepped out from one of the back rooms.

The man in Japanese-style robes.

"Ji," Jayden acknowledged the man. "This is Emily."

"The Yellow Samurai Ranger, at last," Ji breathed, as the two shook hands. "You're injured." He had taken notice of Emily's injured side. Emily was about to shrug it off, because, honestly, she was fine. She could still walk, right? But Ji had continued before she could speak up. "Sit down, I'll patch you up." Emily glanced back at Jayden hesitantly, who nodded. Emily complied.

After Ji grabbed the first aid kit and began patching her up, Jayden explained, motioning to Ji first, "His name is Takeru Tomoharu. He's my great-uncle on my dad's side, from Japan, but Antonio and I call him Ji, or Mentor Ji." Emily nodded. "Antonio here is the team's technical support."

Antonio had lifted up a panel in the floor and pulled out a weird-looking phone. "Meaning, I'm the one who re-calibrates the zords and the disks when they're not being used, and the one who comes up with new weapons and Megazord configurations."

Emily thanked Ji when he was done patching her up. _**(She really did feel a lot better after he had done so.)**_ Antonio handed her the _'phone'_ , the same model Jayden had _**(red and black, except hers had yellow trimming)**_. "This is a Samuraizer," Antonio explained. "Your first morph allowed Ape Zord to unlock the Power within you. We Samurai call it _'Symbol Power'_. I built the Samuraizers to help you channel your Symbol Power a lot better rather than just using your Zord. Trust me, it'll help."

"Okay," Emily acknowledged. "Thank you."

"No problem," Antonio replied with a smile, watching Emily study the Samuraizer in her hand. "Symbol Power is channeled through Japanese kanji characters. Yours is Earth, the same kanji that's on your Zord. Jayden's, here, is Fire. Blue's is Water, Pink's is Air, and Green's is Forest. But you only need to worry about yours."

"Got it."

"Emily," Jii spoke up, "since you are a Ranger now, I highly suggest staying here at the Shiba House. Sticking together is important."

"I understand," Emily said, hesitant to answer so quickly. "And I agree, but I'm still getting used to the idea of being Ranger. Can you give me some time to think about it?"

"Of course," Jii replied. "That's perfectly understandable."

"Thank you," Emily said, with a smile.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

 _ **April 26, 2014**_

"With the water level this low," Dayu said, "we'll never flood Earth." The past two Action Commanders had done nothing significant. The first time they arrived on Earth, they were defeated, easily.

"Don't be such a downer, Dayu," Octoroo replied. "Remember, if we just frighten those human crybabies, the water level will rise and then we can sail out of here."

"Then, quit flapping your noodles and start scaring some humans," Xandred ordered, grabbing the neck of a Marauder pooring him his medicine. "If you've forgotten what scared looks like, take note." The Marauder was struggling to break free, but to no avail.

It was in this moment that a new Nighlock came aboard. "You're in a violent mood today, boss."

"Oh, Rofer!" Octoroo greeted. "I'd offer you to lend a hand, but why not lend us two?"

"How 'bout I offer two of the finest fists anybody in the world has ever seen?!" Rofer gloated.

"I hope you don't brag like that in front of the Samurai Rangers," Dayu advised.

"Tch," Rofer replied, gloating a bit more. "Better watch what you say. If it weren't for Master Xandred, where would you be?"

Rofer jumped in fear, narrowly missing the pick Dayu had thrown at him. "It's actually you. You should watch what you said around me. If you've forgotten, you big-fisted, pea-brained nitwit, you're only an Action Commander. I am a General."

"Hey, I like my big fists," Rofer argued back. "And my brain is, uh..."

Dayu groaned. "Nitwit!"

"ENOUGH!" Xandred threw the Marauder he had grabbed at them. Both of them had jumped out of the way, causing the Marauder to hit the wall hard. "Both of you, quit your bickering. Rofer, the Sanzu River can't rise with you standing here. Go out and get those humans to cry me a river."

"That's what I plan to do," Rofer replied, as Dayu walked away. "And I won't let any of those goody-two-shoes Power Rangers stop me!"

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Julian's Arcade, Panorama City, California**

 _"Mike!"_

The said man in green snapped out of his reverie and turned to his little brother. "Sorry, what?"

The two were sitting at the arcade's pizza parlor's outdoor patio, spending the day together. "I asked if you were okay, like, eight times in the past fifteen minutes."

"Yeah, I'm fine. I've just been a little stressed lately," Mike replied, as honest as he could be.

"You sure?" David asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure."

"Okay," David apparently bought it. "It's just that you're always running off on errands or something, and every time you come back, you seem to be hurt or sore."

"I'm fine," Mike repeated with a gentle smile. "Trust me. How do you like your new friends at day care?"

"They're pretty cool."

David was about to continue, but screams nearby caught their attention and cut him off.

Mike turned just in time to see a green-and-red Nighlock with large fists lifting someone's chair into the air.

"This is gonna get wild!" Rofer announced, before throwing the person he lifted off his chair.

Mike immediately stood up, muttering, "Nighlock..." He turned to David, saying, "Hide somewhere! I'll be right back!" before rushing forward to fight the Nighlock.

"Wait! Mike!" But David ran after him. "That's the wrong way!"

"Stay back, little punk!"

Mike watched _**(seemingly in slow motion)**_ as Rofer's sludge attack hit David square in the chest, causing the kid to slam into some tables, knocking them and him to the ground.

"David!" Mike stared at his little brother's motionless body in shock, before turning back to the Nighlock, anger and rage all over his face. "You're gonna pay for that!" Mike replied, before running back towards Rofer, taking out the Bear Zord _**(in Defense Mode)**_ along the way and using it to morph into the Green Samurai Ranger.

 _ **"Go, Go, Samurai!"**_

Mike unsheathed his Spin Sword and attacked Rofer when he was close enough. "You're through here, Nighlock!" Mike rolled out of the way, before quickly getting back to his feet and attacking again, this time, his sword being met by Rofer's fists.

"Really? I won't be through here until I clobber you!" Mike quickly grabbed one of his fists and struggled to keep it under control. "Hey, if you want to hold my hand, try buying me some flowers first, you broccoli-colored bum!"

Mike swiftly sent the Nighlock a chest to the chest before sending more sword attacks at him. "How about I buy you a one-way ticket back to-" Unfortunately, Mike wasn't able to finish his sentence, because Rofer had sent him a punch to his chest, sending Mike flying. "Oww! What? What just happened?" Mike asked himself, holding his head.

"I'll tell you what just happened," Rofer said. "I just served you a knuckle sandwich. You still hungry? 'Cause here comes a second helping!" Rofer said, driving his right fist into the ground.

"A second helping?" Mike asked, looking around, confused. The ground underneath him cracked and broke, causing Mike to get hit with another of Rofer's powerful punches, sending Mike crashing into a tree.

"I'm as cool as an iceberg, but I sting like a bee," Rofer began to brag. "It's tough to stop what you can't see," he said, sending his fist back for another punch.

Mike got knocked around once again by a couple more punches.

"When it comes to my fists, you're all thumbs," Rofer said. "The _Green Thumb_ , I should say."

Mike wordlessly got up and jumped up onto the roof of the nearby arcade.

"Tired of my underground fight club trick?" Rofer taunted. "Then, time to soar to new heights!"

 _"He can't reach me all the way up here,"_ Mike thought, but he was soon proven wrong, as Rofer's fist once again hit him square in the chest, sending Mike back down to the ground.

"Now, all that's left is putting you in the dumpster," Rofer said, as Mike heavily struggled to get back up.

Rofer raised his fist, trying to get him once more in the stomach for good measure, but a familiar voice called out.

"That's enough!" Rofer was caught off-guard by the Red Ranger, who used his sword to hold him off and defend his green teammate. "You've overstayed your welcome."

Rofer was sent to the ground, causing him to get mad. _**"Arm Stretch!"**_

The Red Ranger side-stepped the breaking ground, but was unable to avoid the fist, sending him to the ground as well, next to Mike.

Red turned to Mike, who was unable to prevent himself from de-morphing, due to his injuries. Out of the corner of his eye, Mike saw the Yellow Ranger, Emily, kneeling next to a still motionless David.

"Even the Red Ranger can't see what's going on underground," Rofer said, before a large crack sounded throughout the area. "Uh-oh. You guys lucked out. I'm starting to dry out. See ya'!" Rofer called out before disappearing back into the gap from whence he came.

Mike lowered his head in shame. "Mike," the Red Ranger called. Mike glanced up in time to see Red de-morph.

" _Jayden..._ "

"You okay?" Mike didn't answer. "Emily, I'm taking him back to the House!"

Emily, still-morphed, looked up and nodded, before gathering little David in her arms. "I'm taking him to the hospital."

Those words alone were enough to make Mike's heart beat even harder in fear of what the Nighlock had done to his brother.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

"Thank goodness you were there," Ji told Mike, whose shirt was off, as Ji patched him up. "You prevented that Nighlock from injuring lots of people."

"Here, man," Antonio handed Mike his own Samuraizer _**(with green trim)**_. "It'll help channel your Symbol Power better."

"Thanks," Mike muttered, his mind only on David. "I thought I could take him on alone."

Jayden sat down next to him. "Being a Ranger is dangerous business," he gently advised. "The Nighlock won't go easy on anybody, not even kids."

"I know that now," Mike replied after putting his shirt back on. "And I regret not knowing that before."

There was a knock at the door, and Emily, de-morphed, entered. "Hey, good news: David's out of surgery. He's no longer in the ER." She was quiet as she spoke. "But...he's still badly hurt. The doctors gave him pain meds, and those knocked him out pretty quickly."

Mike closed his eyes, unable to get the image of his injured, motionless brother on the ground out of his head. The guilt was becoming too much. "Thank you for all your help, but I have to go check on my brother." Mike grabbed his jacket, slipping his new Samuraizer in his pocket, as he stood up.

The four nodded and wordlessly let him leave.

"You know," Emily spoke up, "in some weird way, I feel responsible. He was calling out for his brother the entire way to the Emergency Room, and even when they hauled him off to the surgery. I really feel like I could've done something different."

Emily knew her feeling wasn't entirely justified, but she couldn't help it.

Ji placed a gentle hand on Emily's shoulder. "It's only natural for a Power Ranger to feel that way."

"Does your offer from yesterday still stand?" Emily asked Ji.

"Of course."

"Then I accept," Emily replied, before repeating, "It's best if we all stick together," as she glanced back at the closed front door of her new house.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

Octoroo watched as Rofer was replenished by the Sanzu River water. "Ahh, the water feels great!"

"Nice job, Rofer," Octoroo said, measuring the level with his long measuring stick. "The water level's gone up at least by a foot."

"That's good," Xandred has snuck up on them.

"I was dried out," Rofer explained. "But after a nice soak in the Sanzu River, I'm gonna go pound those Samurai Rangers into chopped liver."

"With your frightening fists fully functional, you'll be back to pestering people in no time," Octoroo said. "This is easier than I first thought."

"Those lousy Rangers won't know what hit 'em!"

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **St. Johnson's General Hospital, Panorama City, Calfornia**

When David opened his eyes, he noticed the hospital room he was in. He began to freak out a little bit _**(because hospitals kind of scared him)**_ , but that fear was quickly forgotten when he saw his older brother, Michael, sitting in a chair next to his bed.

"Mike?" His voice was hoarse, like he hadn't used for the past three hours or so _**(which wasn't too far from the truth, actually)**_.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Mike softly asked.

"A little better," David said, before fibbing a little. "In fact, like I could run a marathon." If only to get that guilty look off of his older brother's face.

"Don't lie to me," was Mike's answer, and David immediately shut his mouth, no longer smiling. "Look at me."

David did so, right into the face of a black square with the green-colored kanji for Forest on it. "W-What is that?"

Then, the square transformed into a little green bear, which roared before turning back into the square form.

"You wanted me to explain why I've been busy lately, right?" Mike explained. "This is the Bear Folding Zord."

"That's crazy," David commented. "Only Power Rangers have zords–" Mike waited for it to click in. "Wait...that means...you're–"

"A Power Ranger?" Mike placed the words right into his mouth. David nodded, unable to find his voice. "Yeah, the Green Samurai Ranger to be exact. Remember last November, when I went shopping to pick up the groceries Mom forgot to get for Thanksgiving dinner?" David nodded. "That's when I ran into Bear Zord here, and I've been the Green Samurai ever since."

There was a silence between the two brothers as David took all of this in.

"I'm sorry, David," Mike continued, his voice even softer than before, and it sounded broken too. "I never meant for you to get hurt. I never meant for you to get caught up in this."

"You don't have to worry about me," David argued. "I'm a big boy now. I'm eleven years old. I'm fine."

"Your age doesn't matter to the Nighlock," Mike bit back, a little harsher than he meant to. David assumed that these Nighlock were what his brother was fighting earlier. Mike toned his voice down a bit _**(They were in a hospital after all)**_. "Whether you're a kid or an adult, David Hernandez, when I tell you to run and hide somewhere, even if it means leaving me behind to die, you need to listen to me."

This was what really took the cake. Their dad was no longer around _**(David was still too young to understand why he left)**_ , and their mother was a really hard worker. Mike was the one family member David loved the most. He always wanted to be exactly like Mike, never anyone else. Just the thought of leaving Mike behind, for anything, broke David's heart.

But Mike always had a reason for whatever he had his brother doing, and those reasons were for keeping him safe. And he always obeyed his brother, but Mike never meant any harm.

And besides, he had been awake and in the loop long enough to know that _Mike's Yellow Ranger friend_ had brought him to the hospital and had never gone away from his side, helping him ease the pain. He was also aware of _Mike's Red Ranger friend_ bringing Mike to some place where he could be patched up.

David had faith in those two that they would help his brother fight off these Nighlock and keep him safe.

Besides, they were Power Rangers, and the Power Rangers always won. _**No matter what.**_

It was a while before David answered, but when he did, he said, "Okay, but on the one condition that you will stay alive long enough to win, no matter what."

David had his pinky finger outstretched. Mike shared a small smile with him before completing the promise.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

That night was a full moon. Near the docks, Mike kneeled, a long stick in his hands _**(intending to use it as a practice sword)**_. His eyes carried the fire gaze of determination.

 _'I need to figure out how to sense a Nighlock's attack move before it comes.'_

Back at the Shiba House, Emily had just entered the kitchen after she finished unpacking. She found Antonio, with a cup of hot tea in his hand, standing at the window.

Emily joined him, finally seeing what he was seeing.

Jayden was in the backyard dojo, wearing a black Samurai-style training uniform with trimming, on his knees _**(Japanese-style)**_. He wasn't moving.

"What's he doing?" Emily asked quietly.

"Meditating," Antonio replied, apparently not surprised and not caring that she was there. "He explained that the Nighlock's attack today caught him off-guard, so he's training his senses so that he can sense the attack next time."

"Wouldn't it be better to train your physical reflexes instead?" Emily asked. "Or at least, at the same time?"

"Rest assured," both Emily and Antonio jumped at the sound Ji's voice throughout the kitchen, "there is always more than one way to complete a task. Everyone is different."

"If only people weren't so selfish and intolerable, the world would be a better place," Emily softly finished. Ji nodded encouragingly.

Emily turned back to Jayden, who had stood up, holding a practice sword in his hand.

Off into the night, Mike jumped up, and both males both struck their pretend target at the same time.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square, Panorama City, California**

 _ **April 27, 2014**_

Blue and Pink had gotten there first, both fully morphed. Jayden and Emily had both rushed out of the House as soon as the Gap sensor went off _**(a measurement/map tool that Ji used to see if the Nighlock had entered a gap and come out the other side)**_.

At the scene, Jayden and Emily both morphed with their Samuraizers _**(Emily with her new one; she had been informed of what her kanji was and how easy it was to write)**_.

 _ **"Samuraizers! Go, Go, Samurai!"**_

Blue and Pink were obviously surprised by the Red Ranger's real identity, but none of them were fazed by it.

 _ **"Samurai Fire, Power Ranger Red!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Water, Power Ranger Blue!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Air, Power Ranger Pink!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Earth, Power Ranger Yellow!"**_

 _ **"Rangers Together, Samurai Forever!"**_

Rofer just laughed, as the four Rangers went back to fighting positions. "Where's your Green Ranger buddy? It's crunch time. Did Broccoli Boy go bye-bye?"

There was a loud whistle and before the four Rangers knew it, Mike Hernandez was standing in front of them. "Hey, Nighlock, you looking for me?"

Emily began to run forward, a smile on underneath her helmet. "Mike, you're back!"

But Mike cut her off with a simple raising of his hand. "Look out. I'm gonna take this Nighlock alone."

Blue sighed, saying, "You can't!"

"I'm gonna try," he replied, turning back to Rofer. "It's payback time. _**Samuraizer! Go, Go, Samurai!**_ " Mike wrote the green kanji for Forest before flipping it and being engulfed in a green light. When the light faded, he was morphed, and then, he hooked up his black Power Disk up to the hilt of his Spin Sword. _**"Samurai Forest, Power Ranger Green! Ready!"**_

"Marauders, go get your daily greens!" Rofer ordered.

Mike charged in right away. "You think that'll stop me?" He asked, slicing down Marauder left and right, letting nothing stand in his way to get to Rofer.

"Mike!" Pink called.

Blue groaned, face-palming. "He shouldn't be doing this on his own!"

Jayden turned to Emily, "Come on. Let's help him."

"Right!" And Emily followed Jayden into battle, Blue and Pink close behind.

Jayden hooked up his Red Lion Disk. _**"Spin Sword: Blazing Fury!"**_ A slash of red fire destroyed his section of the Marauders rather quickly.

Blue hooked up his Blue Dragon Disk. _**"Spin Sword: Dragon Splash!"**_ The rush of cold water brought down his section of Marauders.

Pink hooked up her Pink Turtle Disk. _**"Spin Sword: Airwave Strike!"**_ Her group was defeated pretty fast as well.

Emily hooked up her Yellow Ape Disk. _**"Spin Sword: Seismic Quake!"**_ Her own group of Marauders had been defeated, and she turned back to Jayden, who was hooking up a silver and navy Disk.

 _ **"Spin Sword: Lightning's Fury!"**_

The lightning attack boosted up his offense power, and then, the four turned back to observe Mike and his fight with Rofer.

Mike had just been sent to the ground with another punch from Rofer, again.

But this time, Mike wasted no time in getting back to his feet. In fact, he motioned for Rofer to come at him.

"Is that all you got?" Mike taunted.

"You, asking for it?" Rofer asked, surprised at this tactic, but welcomed it, nonetheless. _**"Arm Stretch!"**_

"Go for it!" Mike turned back around, his back facing Rofer, kneeling on one knee, ready to run. His mind wandered back to last.

"Anticipate his next move," Mike muttered. "Feel the attack coming."

Mike began to run a split second before there was a crash behind him _**(Rofer's arms that had smashed up through the group)**_.

Mike never stopped running. He glanced back behind him a few times in order to see if Rofer and his arms were still chasing him _**(they were)**_ , but he said nothing, only weaving in and out over and around barriers and concrete columns.

Mike only stopped when he came back to face Rofer once more. "Hey, Nighlock! Did you miss me?"

"There you are!" Rofer exclaimed. "It wouldn't have been any more fun if you really had run away!"

Mike turned to his right, and jumped out of the way, looking up just in time to see that Jayden had blocked Rofer's punch with his Spin Sword.

"Hng! Got it!" Jayden exclaimed.

"Jayden!" Mike called out.

"So he stopped one punch, huh?" Rofer said, "Big deal!" before sending his second fist at them.

Jayden struck at the first, successfully getting it out of the way, but Rofer's second fist caught Jayden in the stomach and smashed him back hard into the column behind him.

During that fray, Jayden had pushed Mike out of the way.

"Jayden! Are you okay?" Jayden provided no answer. "Don't worry! I'll take him out!"

Mike ran back towards Rofer, his fist still following him, until Mike jumped over Rofer and landed behind him, holding him steady before Rofer's two fists hit him back, hard.

"Gotcha!" Mike exclaimed, happy at the success of his plan.

"Oww! Once I wield my arms back, you're toast!" Rofer cried out.

But as the second fists settled down, freeing Jayden, the Red Ranger noticed that the Nighlock's arms were all tangled up.

Apparently, the Nighlock noticed that too. "No! My arms!"

"Time for a taste of reality, Nighlock!" Mike said. "This'll teach you to mess with my little brother!" He hooked up his Green Bear Disk up to the hilt of his Spin Sword. _**"Spin Sword: Forest Vortex!"**_

The green slash defeated Rofer's first life.

Jayden got back on steady feet and looked at Mike. He had really done it.

The other three Rangers had joined them too.

"Mike, that was amazing," Emily congratulated him.

"Yeah, you did great," Pink agreed. "Emily told us what happened. I'm sorry your brother was caught up in this mess."

"It's alright," Mike replied. "He's fine now. But thanks."

"I guess you did okay..." Blue muttered.

"Hey!" Mike hit Blue in the back with his sword. "Just _'okay'_?"

Blue turned back around in a split second, his hand on his Sword.

"Woah, woah!" Pink stepped in between them. "Easy there! We're teammates, remember?"

"Good job," Jayden said to Mike. "But get ready for Round 2."

Rofer had grown large in a cloud of fire.

"I guess this knucklehead needs another beating," Mike said, stretching it out, before pulling out his Bear Zord _**(in Defense Mode)**_. "I got this!" This time, Mike used his Samuraizer to enlarge his Zord _**(with the kanji for**_ _'super'_ _ **)**_. _**"Bear Folding Zord, Ready!"**_

Rofer threw another spitball at him, but Mike just braved right through it.

 _ **"Bear Folding Zord: Mauling Mode!"**_ The Bear Zord clawed its way to victory, but it was hardly making progress.

"He shouldn't be doing this on his own!" Blue complained.

But Jayden ignored him. "Let's go!" Jayden told Emily again, and once more, Emily nodded in acknowledgement and followed.

 **"Samuraizers!"**

 **"Lion Folding Zord!"**

 **"Ape Folding Zord!"**

Blue and Pink used their own auras to enlargen their zords.

 _ **"Dragon Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Turtle Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ready!"**_

Just in time too. Because Rofer had just kicked the Bear Zord, knocking it back several feet. The other four Folding Zords caught the Bear just in time.

"Woah, thanks guys!" Mike said.

"It's better if we stick together," Jayden repeated Ji and Emily's earlier words, before writing the symbol necessary to combined the Zords. _**"Zords Combine!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Megazord, We Are United!"**_

"I've taken this as far as I can on my own," Mike said, admitting defeat of his solo attempt. "Let's beat this Nighlock together."

"Right!"

"Here's the attack!" Jayden announced, as Rofer spat once more at them. The Rangers easily blocked the attack with their shield.

"You Rangers can't be me so easily!" Rofer called. _**"Arm Stretch!"**_

The Megazord stopped, watching as Rofer's arms sunk deeper into the ground.

Jayden motioned the Megazord to return the shield to their back, before holding out the sword.

"Just relax, okay?" he advised the other four. "Relax and follow my lead."

Mike turned to Jayden, who was studying the ground beneath them.

"What's up?" Mike asked. "We're not just gonna stand here waiting are we?"

"Get into your opponent's head," Jayden advised again. "Use your instincts to sense their next move and feel the attack coming."

"What?" Blue asked. "You sure? 'Cause Mike's way of beating this guy seems a lot more effective."

Emily thought back to last night, in the kitchen, when she and Antonio were observing Jayden while he was meditating. " _'There's always more than one way to complete a task'_ ," she repeated Ji's words. "I trust you, Jayden."

"So do I," said Mike, surprising Pink and Blue. "Let's do it." Jayden nodded in acknowledgment.

"Clear your mind," he advised. "Focus only on the Nighlock."

The Megazord's eyes dulled, until they were no longer on.

"Hey, did you fall asleep?" Rofer asked. "'Cause here comes your wake-up call."

"Now!"

A split second later, Rofer noticed that the Megazord had tied up his arms again.

"What?!" Rofer was obviously surprised, and angry at the same time.

"Yes!" Emily exclaimed. "We did it!"

"Let's finish this!" Jayden ordered, before the Megazord sliced off Rofer's arms.

The Rangers held out their swords in front of them. _**"Katana Power: Samurai Strike!"**_ The five announced, before spining their Power Disks and then bringing their swords down in a downwards slash. The Megazord did the same, striking down Rofer.

 _ **"Samurai Rangers, Victory is Ours."**_

Mike listened and watched as the other four celebrated in their victory.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Cool Bean Café, Panorama City, California**

Mike had joined Jayden and Emily _**(de-morphed this time, without Blue and Pink, who had disappeared when the battle was over)**_ for some more coffee, or chai tea rather.

"You're asking me to stay at the Shiba House?" Mike asked.

Emily and Jayden both nodded. "Yeah," Emily said.

"Again, it's important if we all stick together," Jayden replied, before reassuring Mike, "You'll still be able to see and visit your family and friends. You won't be a prisoner."

"Oh, so I'll be a guest?" Mike asked, and Jayden nodded again. "Okay, I accept." Mike quieted down. "Because you're right. We are a team. He may not say it aloud, but I can tell that David's relying on you guys to help keep me alive. I made a promise to him, that we would win, and in order to keep that promise..."

"You need our help," Emily finished, because Mike trailed off and couldn't find it in himself to finish, tearing up at the thought of his brother hurt.

Mike gently smiled and nodded.

"You never need to ask for our help," Jayden softly said.

"Yeah," Emily agreed. "Because we are _better together_."

And Mike couldn't help but feel such warmness in his heart when he heard this and saw their smiles. All his old friends would only tease and make fun of him and David because David always tagged along with him.

And he couldn't help but wonder where these two in front of him were in the weeks after his dad left.

Mike had a feeling these two were going to be the best friends he ever had.

" _Rangers Together_ ," Mike muttered.

" _Samurai Forever_ ," Jayden and Emily _**(also muttering)**_ finished for him.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _ **Original Shinkenger Episode: Act 3**_

 _ **Original PRS Episode: The Team Unites**_

 **Note: I changed it from Mike's friends to Mike's brother, mostly because I see Mike as a cool older brother. Besides, when family is attacked by the enemy, it becomes more personal, and I also wanted Mike to have a solid resolution for being a Ranger. Also, for the morphs, think of them as being more like Shinkenger's morphs. They're shorter and a lot less boring when you look at them for a long time.**

A/N: Do review, please. **If you guys have any ideas you want me to consider adding, please PM me.** A preview for the next chapter:

 _ **Season 1, Episode 4:**_ _"Deal With a Nighlock"_

 _"Kevin goes through a rough patch just as one of Emily's many secrets is revealed."_


	4. 4: Deal With a Nighlock

A/N: I hereby present to you all my own version (yes, another one) of Power Rangers: Samurai. It does have a much darker theme to it than Saban's version (which I do not hate, as you can obviously tell by my other PR stories). There were some flaws, yes, and I'm still going to use some terms you are familiar with.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Power Rangers Samurai or Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. I just own most of the plot and the characters and things you don't recognize from the original version.

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _"Kevin goes through a rough patch just as one of Emily's many secrets is revealed."_

 **Better Together**

 _ **Power Rangers: Samurai REDO**_

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

 _ **May 3, 2014**_

"Four centuries ago, in ancient Japan, eleven Zords were created, each being assigned a different color, in order to individualize the samurai warrior they were assigned to. There are the Core Five: the Red Lion Zord, the Blue Dragon Zord, the Pink Turtle Zord, the Green Bear Zord, and the Yellow Ape Zord, but there are also the Golden Clawzord, the Crimson Bullzord, the Aqua Swordfish Zord, the White Tiger Zord, and the Purple Octozord."

"Wait!" Mike interrupted Ji's explanation over breakfast that morning. "There are eleven of us? I was told we were only a team of five."

"There are actually six of you," Ji corrected. "The sixth and final member of your team is the Gold Ranger. The Grand Shogun, the original core five Rangers, plus the Light Thief, the original Gold, failed the first war against the Nighlock. It ended in a draw for both sides, but leaned towards a victory for Master Xandred. The Grand Shogun then appointed their Zords to immortalize and travel throughout time to choose their new masters, the ones who were prophecied to end the war against Xandred once and for all: you guys. This is the first time the Core Five have assembled since the Grand Shogun."

"Do we need to find the other Zords too?" Emily asked.

"The team can hold without them as long as the Core Five Rangers are present, but yes, as it will help you in the long run."

"Well," Mike said. "I guess we have our mission. Get Blue and Pink to join us, then find Gold, and then find the other Zords."

"There's a bit of a problem, though," Jayden gently cut in. "All the other Zords are either lost or damaged. And one has never been tamed and, thus, has never had a master before in their entire existence."

Mike and Emily snuck a concerned glance at each other. "That _is_ a problem..." Mike commented.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Season 1, Episode 4:** _Deal With a Nighlock_

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

Xandred came over to one of the windows of the ship when Dayu reported, "Swimming weirdo approaching off the port stern."

"Hey, what's that creep Doubletone doing here?" Xandred demanded.

Doubletone was simply enjoying himself while being halfway submerged in the Sanzu River water. "Humans are such crybabies when they're scared. Isn't wonderful how it's their tears that raise the River? Master Xandred, permission to come aboard."

Xandred sighed in frustration as Doubletone came aboard anyways. "What do you think you're doing here, Doubletone?!"

"Nice to see you too," Doubletone replied.

"I didn't summon you!"

"Oo-ah-oo, he got a call from Octoroo!" Octoroo said. "His face may break a lot of mirrors, but I heard he's a heartbreaker too."

"Tch," Dayu said. "This lowlife?"

"He has the ability to see deep within people's hearts and read what they want most in their life," Octoroo explained. "Then he emotionally manipulates them into forcefully giving it up. Genius, right?"

"Yeah," Doubletone bragged. "Nobody does it better!"

Xandred, however, stomped his foot in a rage, "THAT'S WHAT THEY ALL SAY! DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY NIGHLOCK HAVE FAILED ME ALREADY?! FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION!" Xandred's temper _**(which included him kicked the posts that held the ship together)**_ was stirring up to River into quite the storm. "IF YOU DON'T MAKE THE RIVER RISE, I'LL MAKE YOU FEEL EVEN UGLIER THAN YOUR FACE!"

"Don't worry, Master Xandred," Doubletone eased, as Xandred took his medicine bottle from the nearby Marauder. "All you have to do his kick back and relax and let me do all the work. Allow me to show you what even one person giving upon their dream can do."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Cool Bean Café, Panorama City, California**

Mia glanced up when she felt a presence come upon the table _**(actually a booth)**_ she had reserved for her and Kevin _**(like she did every weekday while Kevin was at swim practice)**_ , and she was surprised upon seeing that it was Kevin.

"You're back early," Mia said, before pausing when she noticed the look on Kevin's face. It was...sad and depressing. So she changed her tone. "What's wrong?"

Kevin refused to look her in the eyes, but he answered anyways, albeit in a quiet and sorrowful voice. "The coach came up to me at practice today, and he said that I had missed one too many practices without forewarning, you know, since I can only miss three." Mia nodded. "So he gave me a choice of whether to take janitorial duties with supervision, or to quit the team...Mia, I–" He hesitated, as if afraid of how she was going to respond. "I chose to quit the swim team."

There were tears in his eyes, and Mia could understand. The swim team meant a lot to Kevin. His biggest dream was to swim in the Olympics. And being on the swim team was a big step to making that happen.

Mia could feel tears come to her own eyes, before she moved over to sit next to him. She gave him a hug, saying, "I'm so sorry, Kevin."

"You have nothing to be sorry for," he replied, despite the fact that he returned her hug. "It's the war with the Nighlock to blame. There's no telling how long it'll take to beat them."

Mia took the Turtle Folding Zord _**(in Defense Mode)**_ out of her cardigan pocket. "We're nothing special. We have dreams, we have feelings, and we have problems, just like everybody else. So why were we chosen as the odd ones out of the group."

"I don't get it either," Kevin replied, looking down at the Dragon Zord _**(in Defense Mode)**_ in his lap. "You wanted to be a singer, and that's hard enough to achieve as it is normally, but being a Ranger will make that impossible."

"Yeah," Mia agreed. "What's the point of having dreams if they're just going to get crushed? Why did we even agree to be Rangers in the first place?"

Kevin offered no other words. He just kept looking at the Dragon Zord in his hands.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Central Park, Panorama City, California**

Mia had brought Kevin to the park, in order to walk off his sorrow and anger over quitting the swim team. So far, however, he was quiet, not really talking. Mia was difficulty trying to nap him out of his stupor.

"You want some ice cream?" Mia asked. Now that he could have it, since he was no longer on the swim team, it was okay.

"No thank you," Kevin replied. "But thank you for offering. I just need time to think." Mia nodded in understanding, but stopped both her and Kevin _**(with her hand)**_ when she saw something weird. "What?"

Mia pointed at the sight she was seeing. There was a little boy, dressed in baseball garb, talking to a...Nighlock?

 _The Nighlock was ugly, though, half-tiger, half...red water?_

"You promise?" The kid was asking.

"I promise," the Nighlock replied. "Pink finger swear?" He extended his pink finger out to the kid, who was about to meet him halfway, before-

"Hey!" Both Mia and Kevin glanced up to see the Red Ranger landing and swinging his sword at the Nighlock. Then the Green and Yellow Rangers send a combo kick at the Nighlock, knocking him down.

The kid stumbled back into the tree behind him, in fright. But when the Yellow kneeled beside him, asking "Are you okay?", he felt a little better.

"Y-Yeah..."

"Nighlock," Jayden warned, he and Mike lowering into battle stances, "What kind of mischief are you up to with this kid?"

"My name is Doubletone. And I'm not to anything," he blatantly lied. "We're friends. Right, Ryan?"

The kid, named Ryan, said nothing, still scared.

"You're lying," Emily said outright, calmly _**(much to the others' and Doubletone's surprise)**_ , before turning back to Ryan. "Get out of here. It's too dangerous." Ryan ran off.

"Stay out of my business!"

"Well, we've made it our business," Kevin retorted.

"What are you two still doing here?!" Mike demanded. "Run!"

"Let's go, Mia!" Kevin said to Mia _**(who was standing behind Emily, because the latter was also protecting her)**_ , ignoring Mike and the other two, before they pulled out their Folding Zords.

"Right!"

 _ **"Go, Go, Samurai!"**_ Jayden, Mike, and Emily were shocked to say the least. Kevin and Mia were the Blue and Pink Rangers _**(respectively)**_.

"Let's go!" Both girls charged at the same time as the three guys.

Mike swung and missed.

"Hey, didn't I just warn you to mind your business?" Doubletone asked, before dodging Kevin's attack and then sending both him and Mike to the ground.

Emily clashed swords with him, before he knocked to the ground too. Mia fell trying to dodge and narrowly miss Doubletone's attack.

Jayden was next, as he missed a swing and got kicked in the chest.

Mia and Emily got up to defend him. Emily swing and missed before flipping over his back, while Mia attacked next. Then, the two girls attacked together, but to no avail.

Emily got back up, refusing to give up, her Spin Sword in her hand. But she stumbled backwards and nearly fell back when Doubletone appeared right in front of her face.

"How would you like to see your sister again?" He asked.

Emily immediately tensed up the second she heard this. _How did this guy know about Serena? Especially since he was a Nighlock?_

Emily's Spin Sword finally hit its target. "Ouch!" She swung again and landed another hit. "Ow!" And another. "Oww! Relax, I'm only trying to cut you a deal!"

"Take your fake deals and go home!" Emily swung again, but missed.

Doubletone disappeared into the gap in the tree in which he came out of, saying, "The fun has just begun!"

The other four Rangers _**(now standing)**_ had watched that last part in awe.

"I think he's planning something real bad," Mike commented.

"I think so too," Jayden replied, before turning to Mia and Kevin. "You two, go tail and protect that kid. Maybe we'll find out some useful information about what that Nighlock is planning."

Mia and Kevin apparently had no problem following this order, as they nodded and ran off in the direction Ryan went.

Meanwhile, Jayden led Mike and Emily back the House.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

"Hey! I'm back!" Doubletone announced. "Did you miss me?"

Dayu immediately turned around, whispering, "Shh! Tone it down, foghorn!"

"Master's medicine finally put him to sleep," Octoroo quietly explained.

"Doubletone," Dayu quietly spoke, "tell me what brings your menacing mug back here so soon."

"This kid I met dreams of playing baseball," Doubletone explained, bringing his voice tone a couple of notches. "Tell Master X I'm gonna grand slam that kid's dreams."

"So, get going, and play ball," Dayu ordered.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Central Park, Panorama City, California**

The two had found Ryan at baseball practice nearby, and the two, not wanting to seem like stalkers, had decided to meet him halfway.

"Hey," Mia gently smiled. "My name is Mia. And this is my friend, Kevin. Do you mind if we talk to you about something?"

Ryan shrugged, but listened anyways.

"We saw you talking to that Ni–, ahem, that monster earlier," Kevin said. "Do you mind telling us what you two were talking about?"

"Ummm," Ryan hesitated, looking down at the baseball keychain in his hand. "He was just trying to make me laugh. That's all."

 _No way. Ryan wasn't laughing or smiling earlier._

"Don't worry," Mia said. "We're here to help."

"Yeah," Kevin said. "You can tell us anything."

"I told you, nothing happened!" came Ryan's outburst. "Leave me alone!"

And he wheeled away on his bike before the two could say anything else.

"Wait!" Kevin was about to go after him, but Mia stopped him.

"Give him some space," she explained. "Besides, it's not like we can force him to tell us. But, he's definitely hiding something."

"Yeah," Kevin agreed. "This is where we tail him so we can keep an eye on him."

Mia nodded and the two followed Ryan's bike's trail.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **1471 Halle Avenue, Panorama City, California**

Mia and Kevin were peering behind a tree, watching Ryan practice his swinging. He stopped and looked at his bat like it was something precious. But he had a sad look on his face. Then the two watched Ryan head on inside when his mom called out that lunch was ready.

Beside Mia, Kevin commented, "He reminds me of me." Mia turned to him. "When I was a kid. Remember? I used to practice all the time, because nothing was going to get in my way. I had a goal, a dream, to swim in the Olympics, and I wasn't going to let anyone crush my dreams. But...that's a child's thinking. That's a kid's sentiment. What he doesn't know is how hard it is to be forced to give up on your dream because there's no other path you can take to achieve it."

"You miss it," Mia said. "You miss your dream. I know you do."

"Yeah, I miss it. I mean, it was my dream," Kevin replied. "But I've got you, because you were in the same boat once. You're my friend, Mia, my best friend. I know you'll be there for me for anything. I feel better knowing that you're still here, and that you haven't left."

"And I never will," Mia promised, holding out her pinky finger.

Kevin held out his own pinky finger and held it out halfway.

With their fingers still connected, Kevin revealed, "Besides, maybe being a Ranger means that, if I give up my dream, then everyone else can follow theirs, to their heart's content. I'd rather have that happen, than for everyone else to give up their dreams. If we don't have dreams, then what's the purpose of living?"

That last part wasn't a sad sentiment, Mia noted. It was _hopeful_.

 _Maybe Kevin was right. Maybe that's what being a Ranger meant. That one sacrifice saved many._

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

It was sunset, nearing nighttime.

Mia set the completed baked chicken on the counter of the kitchen. It smelled really good. She turned back to the mashed potatoes after closing the oven door to let the bread bake thoroughly.

Antonio came in, holding two Samuraizers in his hand, one trimmed with blue and the other with pink. "Here you go," he said. "Yours and Kevin's Samuraizers." He set them on the kitchen counter, next to the chicken. "It'll help channel your Symbol Power better."

"Thank you," she sent him a smile.

"I'll get out of your hair," Antonio replied, before leaving the kitchen.

He didn't go far, though, as he kneeled right above Mike, who was peering around the doorway into the kitchen. Jayden and Emily were in the same position on the other side of the door frame.

"So, what is she doing again exactly?" Antonio asked, all four of them not only whispering, but also dressed in their pajamas.

"Making a home-cooked dinner to take to Kevin. Remember, they're staking out at Ryan's house, in case that creep Doubletone comes back," Mike answered.

"Why can't Ji do it?" Jayden asked. "He does all the cooking anyways."

"Kevin's also feeling a little down," Emily added. "His status as a Ranger meant he had to quit the swimming team and give up on his dream of swimming in the Olympics. At least, that's how Mia explained it. So she's cooking dinner for him to cheer him up."

"You do have to admit," Antonio said, "that does smell really, really good."

Mike and Jayden both nodded in agreement.

But Emily didn't say the same. Instead, she quietly asked herself, "How could Doubletone know about Serena?" This caught the other three guys' attention.

"Is Serena your sister?" Mike asked. Emily glanced at him, a sad look on her face, before nodding, and reaching into her back pocket and pulling out a wooden flute.

"This used to be hers," Emily explained. "Eight years ago, she came here, to Panorama City, for college, but one year later, she stopped replying to my letters and my emails, and that was the last time anybody ever saw her or heard from her. But she's been gone long enough for people to suspect that she's never coming back. No clues, nothing."

 _Indicating that people had accepted the possibility that Serena was dead._

From above her, Jayden placed a gently, steady hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry. We'll find the answers eventually."

Emily looked back up at him and smiled.

"Yeah, don't worry about it," Mike agreed, and Antonio nodded, agreeing as well.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **1471 Halle Avenue, Panorama City, California**

It was nighttime now, and Mia had come back to see Kevin doing push-ups, just for something to do.

"Hey," she greeted. As Kevin got up, she asked, "Anything to report yet?"

"Nope," he replied, sitting down in the bench. "Not yet."

"Good," Mia said, sitting down next to him, putting her car keys in her purse. "I brought you some dinner. My homemade baked chicken, with bacon-cheddar mashed potatoes, steamed green beans, and two bread rolls, no butter, just the way you like it." She placed the container filled with the said food in his lap.

He opened the lid and was immediately hit with the aroma of fresh-out-of-the-oven dinner. A smile immediately appeared across his face. "Thanks, Mia. This means a lot."

"Go ahead and eat up," and he did so, but she didn't stop talking there. She reached into her bag and pulled out medium-sized container with strawberry-banana yogurt in it, saying, "Did you know that Emily has an older sister?"

She had been listening to the conversation outside the kitchen door frame. She knew it was wrong, but she couldn't help but eavesdrop.

"She does?" Kevin asked, before remembering what Doubletone had said to Emily earlier. "Oh, yeah, that's right, she does."

"Yeah, her name is Serena," Mia continued. "And she went to college here eight years ago. But a year later, she disappeared without a trace."

"That's terrible," Kevin said, her heart going out to their youngest teammate. "Imagine how Terry would feel if you disappeared like that."

"I know," Mia said. "And, it's only fair that we help Emily retrieve clues about her sister. She is on our team now."

"True," Kevin said. "We'll keep an eye out."

"That, and, uh...Mentor Ji told me something important," Mia continued. "We still have six more Zords to find."

"What?" Kevin was surprised at this. "Dragon said we were only a team of five."

"Apparently, we also have a Gold Ranger joining our team in the future," Mia explained. "The other five Zords don't necessarily need owners. We just need them on our side, and fully functional. And there's one Zord, out of those five, that still needs to be tamed."

"A wild Zord?" Kevin replied with slight sarcasm. "Oh, boy. Can't wait for that one."

"We won't be alone," Mia replied. "We'll have our team with us."

"Yeah, I guess this Ranger life isn't so bad."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Hallberry Forest, Panorama City, California**

 _ **May 4, 2014**_

Kevin was awoken the next morning to a front door opening and closing. He nudged Mia beside him awake _**(and with the blanket she had brought wrapped around them both)**_ , before pointing her at the sight of Ryan running down the street to the nearby dumpster.

"Let's follow him," Mia suggested, and the two took off, just missing Doubletone popping up from another gap in the nearby fence.

Together, Kevin and Mia watched as Ryan dumped his baseball gear, including his glove and his bat _**(although reluctantly)**_ into the dumpster. The two Rangers were still hidden, but they watched as Ryan yelled out into the open air.

"Okay, I did it!" He yelled. "I kept my promise!"

"Hey," Ryan turned around when he heard Mia behind him. "Don't you have a game today?"

"N-No," he stuttered. "I quit baseball."

Kevin's heart skipped a beat. "Why?"

"I can't tell you!" Ryan said, before running off into the nearby forest.

Kevin turned to the dumpster and took out Ryan's baseball gear. "No, he's not giving up his dream. Not if I have anything to say about it. Mia, go put this in your car. I'll keep tailing him."

Mia nodded, taking the stuff from Kevin and rushing off to her car.

Meanwhile, Ryan kept running throughout the forest, and Kevin was running after him, before a staff with a leaf-like spear-head came crashing down behind him, stopping both Kevin and Ryan. Mia came upon the scene, only to be stopped and greeted by Doubletone.

"Buzz off, Rangers!"

"You again!" Mia exclaimed, joining Kevin in standing in front of Ryan and protecting him.

"What you are up to, Nighlock?" Kevin demanded.

"Nothing, you nosy pests!" Doubletone replied, obviously lying again. "My friend Ryan and I made a deal. Right, kid?"

Mia looked back at Ryan, who simply said nothing and looked down at the baseball keychain in his hand. His fists clenched around it.

"Oh, hey, look! It's the garbage truck!"

"Why'd you make him through away his baseball equipment?" Kevin demanded.

"Because he loves playing baseball!" Doubletone honestly replied. "And I got him to give up his dream. Now, he's so sad, the Sanzu River will rise a good foot or two."

"Yeah, but you promised!" Ryan yelled. "You promised that if I gave up something special to me, I'd get something even more special in return!"

"What'd he promise you?" Mia asked, no longer the gentle, kind flower that she was around kids.

"Don't say it, kid!" Doubletone warned.

"What did he promise you, Ryan?" Kevin joined Mia, and urged Ryan to speak.

"Where is he?" Ryan asked Doubletone.

"I said you have to be patient," Doubletone replied.

"Lies!" Kevin called him out. "Don't listen to him Ryan. He's just trying to trick you."

"What did he promise you, Ryan?" Mia asked, once again, more gentle than the last time, but still fed up with being kept in the dark.

The four looked back and witnessed the truck empty out all of the dumpster's containments in the truck bed in the back.

Ryan was speechless, however much Mia and Kevin knew better.

"And there you have it," Doubletone said as the garbage truck drove away. "A heart-breaking home run! Game over!"

Ryan was quiet, and he wouldn't stop looking at the baseball keychain in his hands as he explained, "My dad's fighting in the war overseas. He said, if I gave up baseball, he'd bring my dad back."

Mia and Kevin immediately remembered what Doubletone had said to Emily yesterday.

 _ **"How would you like to see your sister again?"**_

If Emily had fallen for it, she'd be in the same boat as Ryan here.

 _ **"Here's a lucky charm for you," Ryan's dad has said before he had left. Ryan accepted it with a smile. "I'll be thinking about you at your playoff game." Ryan's smile never faded as he and his dad shared a hug.**_

In the present time, tears were falling down Ryan's freckled face.

Doubletone merely laughed aloud. He had done it!

"How dare you try to make him give up his dream?!" Kevin demanded.

"That's unforgivable!" Mia said, before turning to Ryan, saying, "Go back home. We'll take care of this monster."

 _ **"Samuraizer! Go, Go, Samurai!"**_

The two each wrote their own Symbol, allowing them to morph.

 _ **"Samurai Water, Power Ranger Blue!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Air, Power Ranger Pink!"**_

 _ **"Rangers Together, Samurai Forever!"**_

Doubletone blew some powerful wind at them, knocking them back and sending them deeper into the forest.

"Now that you're in my part of the woods, your end is near," Doubletone taunted, Mia and Kevin lowering into battle stances. _**"Tiger Tidal Wave!"**_

The combined forces from both halves of Doubletone sent the two Rangers falling to the ground, injured.

"See, I'm all kinds of trouble for you Rangers," Doubletone said.

"He's right," Kevin whispered to Mia. "We can't take another hit like that."

Mia placed a gloved hand on Kevin's shoulder. "We can't give up. For Ryan."

 _ **"Super Speed Attack!"**_

The three looked up in time to see Jayden, Mike, and Emily using their Samurai Super Speed to get an attack in on Doubletone, before landing back beside Mia and Kevin.

"We raced here when the Gap Sensor went off," Jayden said. "Sorry we're late."

"Thanks," Mia said, the five taking their usual positions in the formation. "You guys are just in time."

"Marauders!" Doubletone sang. "Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

And the group of Marauders rose of from gaps in the ground, but the Rangers charged and met them halfway.

Jayden struck down one Marauder on his left, then one on his right, before spinning his black Power Disk. _**"Fire Smasher!"**_ After hooking up the red Lion Disk, he was able to take out more than usual.

Mike spun his black Power Disk. _**"Forest Spear!"**_ He used his spear to shove some back in his right, and then to his left, before striking more down with the blade of his spear.

Emily spn her black Power Disk. _**"Earth Slicer!"**_ He struck one down on her left, "Here's some for you," then one down on her right, "some for you," and struck down two behind her, "and some for you! Don't worry, I didn't forget you guys!" She finished, throwing her Earth Slicer at the rest.

"Hey! You're giving my Marauders the blues...and the pinks, I guess," Doubletone complained, before Mia and Kevin both spun their black Power Disks.

 _ **"Hydro Bow!"**_

 _ **"Sky Fan!"**_

 _ **"Tiger Tidal Wave!"**_ Doubletone sent out his attack once again.

But Kevin and Mia both used their weapons to block and destroy his attack, and their attacks keptgoing, eventually hitting Doubletone.

"Doubletone's been double-teamed! No fair!" And that was the end of his first life.

Kevin and Mia looked back at the explosion fading, before turning back to each other. Kevin placed a praising hand on Mia's shoulder, while the other three ran up to them.

"That was amazing, you guys!" Emily said, placing both her hands on Mia's shoulders from behind her.

"Yeah, great teamwork," Jayden said.

"Thanks!"

But Doubletone had grown to mega size. "Now, it's my turn to make you all sad!"

Kevin and Mia immediately stepped forward. "Mia, let's go!"

"Right behind you," she replied, both of them taking out their Folding Zords.

 _ **"Samuraizers!"**_

 _ **"Draagon Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Turtle Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ready!"**_

Doubletone threw another wind attack at them, but they just braved through it.

"Let's heat things up, Creepazoid! _**Dragon Splash!**_ "

The flames hit Doubletone solid on the chest and the face. "Yuck! Dragon breath!"

"See, Nighlock, lying hurts!" Mia said, before motioning her Zord to go back into Defense Mode. "Kevin!"

"Right!" Kevin motioned Dragon to hold Turtle in its little hands, before dropping Turtle right on Doubletone's head.

"That's for tricking Ryan," Mia said.

"You won't be doing that to anyone else!" Kevin added.

Down on the ground, Jayden turned to the other two, and said, "It's our turn."

"Right, let's do it," Mike said.

 _ **"Samuraizers!"**_

 _ **"Lion Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Bear Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ape Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ready!"**_

Once inside their zords, Jayden wrote the symbol to unite all five Zords. _**"Zords Combine!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Megazord, We Are United!"**_

The Megazord drew its sword. "Who cares? I'll rip you apart piece by piece," Doubletone said, as they crossed blades. "Let's lose your sword first." The Megazord was forced to let go of the sword in order to break free. "Much better."

The Rangers inside the cockpit stumbled backwards.

"Jayden, I've got an idea!" Kevin said.

"Then, go for it!" Jayden replied.

 _ **"Dragon Leap!"**_ Kevin said, spinning the blue Dragon Disk on his Spin Sword. The Megazord leapt up in the air, due to Dragon pushing them up.

Mia went next, spinning her pink Turtle Disk on the hilt of her Sword, _**"Aerial Turtle Strike!"**_

Turtle detached, her fins glowing pink, spun around, and struck Doubletone down the middle. Turtle reattached to the Megazord before the Megazord picked the sword back up.

"Now, where were we?" Kevin asked. "Mia, remind me again?"

"I believe, this creep was about to meet his end," Mia replied.

"Oh, yeah."

The Rangers held out their swords in front of them. _**"Katana Power: Samurai Strike!"**_ The five announced, before spinning their Power Disks.

"Umm, is it too late to cut a deal?" Doubletone asked.

The Rangers then brought their swords down in a downwards slash. The Megazord did the same, striking down Doubletone.

"I'll take that as a _'no'_!" were Doubletone's last words.

 _ **"Samurai Rangers,"**_ Jayden started.

 _ **"Victory is Ours,"**_ Mia and Kevin finished for him.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Central Park, Panorama City, California**

He had lied to his coach, saying that he had _'lost his gear'_. Now, Ryan was sitting on the bench, in the dugout, watching his team play. Both teams were tied 5-5, and it was the break in between the top and the bottom of the ninth inning.

"Hey, Ryan," his coach called, and Ryan turned to see his coach with Mia and Kevin standing beside him. Ryan came over when he was motioned to.

"What's up, Coach?" Ryan asked, before his coach held out Ryan's baseball gear in front of him for Ryan to take.

"These two were kind enough to save these from the trash truck. They thought these were too nice to throw away," his coach explained, motioning to Kevin and Mia.

Ryan took them back with excitement. "Thank you!" But then he turned to Kevin and Mia. "How can I pay you back?"

Kevin kneeled in front of him, "By not giving up your dreams. Besides, I don't think your dad would want you to give up baseball either. Having a parent in the military isn't easy. I know, because my mom is in the war too, but that's no excuse to give up what you love doing."

A smile came back to Ryan's face. "Thank you, again." And Ryan ran off to change into his uniform.

Meanwhile, Mia and Kevin rejoined the other three in the bleachers. "How'd it go?" Mike asked.

"Very well," Mia said.

"Yeah, Ryan'll be okay," Kevin said. "Mia and I would like to officially join the team. So, people everywhere no longer have to give up what they love."

"Or their dreams," Mia added.

"You two sound supremely confident," Jayden commented. "I would tell you to take your time, but I see you've already made your decision."

"We have," Mia said. "And we realize now why we were chosen out of everyone else."

Emily finished for her, "Because the Zords pick people who are kind and sincere, and aren't afraid to stand up and fight for justice." Ape popped out from inside Emily's cardigan pocket and happily winked at them. Emily smiled back at her Zord, her own father coming to her mind.

Ryan had emerged in his uniform right in time for the bottom of the ninth inning.

Emily was brought to attention by Jayden flipping open his Samuraizer, drawing the kanji for _'dream'_ and flipped it at Ryan. She and the other four Rangers watched as the red kanji hit Ryan before pulling back and turning into a man in army greens.

"Dad!" Ryan exclaimed, and the Rangers _**(sans Jayden)**_ watched in awe. Emily felt tears come to her eyes.

 _ **"Go get 'em, Tiger,"**_ Ryan's dad's apparition said, before fading away in white light and sparkles.

There was a smile on Ryan's face.

"Ryan, you're up! Two out, you're our last chance!" The coach called.

Ryan glanced down at his baseball keychain, his lucky charm, one more time, still smiling, before running to grab his helmet and bat.

"H-How did you do that hocus pocus?" Mike asked Jayden.

"That was Symbol Power," Jayden corrected before explaining, "I helped a dream become a vision, but I could only sustain it for a moment."

"That meant a lot to Ryan," Kevin comforted him. "No matter how long it could've been sustained."

"Here's the first pitch," Mia brought their attention back to the game.

Ryan let it fly by. It didn't look sufficient enough to hit.

 _"Strike 1!"_

The second pitch. Ryan swung, and he missed.

 _"Strike 2!"_

He was getting nervous, but he glanced back at Kevin and Mia up in the stands. The two nodded at him, both giving him smiles of encouragement.

He relaxed his muscles. He inhaled deeply and then exhaled slowly. Then, he motioned that he was ready for the next pitch.

The third pitch. Ryan swung, and his bat made contact.

The runner on third immediately advanced to home plate, as Ryan advanced to first.

The crowd cheered louder when the ball Ryan hit made it over the fence.

"Home run, Central!"

Ryan mentally cheered too, a big smile on his face, as he ran around the bases. Just passing third, he glanced back at the stands, to Kevin and Mia.

They were cheering too.

I guess it's safe to tell you that the Rangers weren't the only team that won that day.

Ryan's team did too.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _ **Original Shinkenger Episode: Act 4**_

 _ **Original PRS Episode: Deal With a Nighlock**_

 **Note: Yes, I dared to do it, okay? I made Mia a good cook. Go ahead and fight me, if you dare.**

A/N: Do review, please. **If you guys have any ideas you want me to consider adding, please PM me.** A preview for the next chapter:

 _ **Season 1, Episode 5:**_ _"United We Stand"_

 _"A Nighlock arrives, but he's invincible. Jayden has a secret tool strong enough to beat him, but will it work? And is Mia really sure about joining the team?"_


	5. 5: United We Stand

A/N: I hereby present to you all my own version (yes, another one) of Power Rangers: Samurai. It does have a much darker theme to it than Saban's version (which I do not hate, as you can obviously tell by my other PR stories). There were some flaws, yes, and I'm still going to use some terms you are familiar with.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Power Rangers Samurai or Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. I just own most of the plot and the characters and things you don't recognize from the original version.

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _"A Nighlock arrives, but he's invincible. Jayden has a secret tool strong enough to beat him, but will it work? And is Mia really sure about joining the team?"_

 **Better Together**

 _ **Power Rangers: Samurai REDO**_

 **Season 1, Episode 5:** _United We Stand_

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

 _ **May 8, 2014**_

Emily had to admit. These training uniforms did look pretty cool. _**(They were the same as Jayden's, each in their own respective Ranger color, as Emily saw during her first night here at the Shiba House, except she and Mia were wearing black Capri's instead of long pants.)**_

She, Kevin, Mia, and Mike were in the indoor dojo. She and Kevin were sparring in basic kesigiri, while Mia was wailing on a punching bag, Mike was working on his Symbol Power near the Gap Sensor table, Antonio was sitting across from Mike at the same table, working on a sketch or something, and Ji and Jayden were nowhere to be found. In fact, they hadn't seen Jayden since breakfast, and Ji since she volunteered to go out and look for Jayden.

Emily narrowly missed Kevin's head with her wooden sword before Kevin spoke up and said, "You know if you ever need to talk, Em, I'm here for you."

Emily rose an eyebrow, wondering why he suddenly said that. "Talk?"

Kevin continued, "Yeah. You know, about your family, with your sister, and all? I heard you two were very close."

Emily gently smiled at him, "Thanks, Kevin. You're a sweetie, but I'm fine. I promise." She gently patted his shoulder before going back to sword practice.

Satisfied with her answer, Kevin smiled back before bounding over to Mike, who had just finished the final stroke on his _'leaves'_ symbol, which then glowed green and turned into a bunch of leaves.

"Yes!" Mike exclaimed. "I did it!"

"Good job," Antonio looked up from his sketchbook and smiled at him.

"Thanks, man," Mike smiled back, before Kevin came up.

"Yeah, good job," and Mike's smile fell a bit. He couldn't help but feel that Kevin was being a bit condescending. "According to Ji, it takes a while to master Symbol Power. Fortunately, I've already mastered mine, so if you ever need advice, just come to me, okay?"

"Uh-huh," Mike muttered, before advising, "Look, Kev, going around and telling people you're a nice guy only gives them the opposite impression."

"Yeah, you're probably right," Kevin admitted, "but we're a team now. We need to start trusting each other, and I want to let you guys know that I am a reliable guy."

"You are, Kev," Mia replied before turning back to her punching bag exercise. She was then dead silent.

So, he walked over to her, as Emily looked over at Antonio with a sympathetic gaze.

Kevin spoke to Mia in a quiet voice, "Mia, you okay?"

"I'm fine, Kevin," she replied with a little smile. "Thanks for worrying."

But he knew her smile was fake. "Mia-"

He narrowly dodged the crescent kick she aimed at his head. "I said I'm fine, Kevin," she retorted before turning back to her punching bag.

Antonio was brought to attention when Emily sat down next to him. "Hey, you okay?" she asked.

He sent a _**(hopefully not obviously)**_ fake smile at her, saying, "Yeah, I'm fine."

She didn't buy it, because she didn't return his smile. "No, you're not. What's bothering you?"

"I'm not a Ranger, like you guys," Antonio explained, and it was all he had to say.

"You want to be a Ranger too," she guessed. "You want to be a part of it."

"Yeah," he confirmed, amazed at how easily she caught on to his reasoning and his emotions. "I mean, I don't have any powers, no Symbol Power whatsoever, and I only have my brain and technician skills. I know some martial arts, but there's only so much I can do to help you guys."

"One doesn't need to be a Ranger to be useful," Emily gently advised, before getting up and picking up a second wooden sword from the rack. She held it out to Antonio. "But if you really want to get stronger physically, then come spar with me."

Antonio found it in himself to smile as he put his sketchbook down, and got up to join her.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Isolated Training Area, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

Jayden spun the orange-colored Disk on the hilt of his Spin Sword, engulfing it in fire. He swung it around before holding it out in front of him, trying to control the fire.

Ji arrived in time to see the orange Disk backfire on Jayden, forcing him backwards and he landed on his back.

Jayden sat up in time to see Ji pick up the Spin Sword he was forced to drop.

Jayden had been determined ever since two days ago, when Jii found the orange-colored Disk, the Beetle Disk, down in the basement.

"You're not ready to use the Beetle Disk yet," Ji said. "At this point, you're literally playing with fire. Since you're not Beetle's new master, you need twice the amount of Symbol Power you have now. So unless you're willing to give this 100%, you'll be going nowhere fast."

"I'm giving it _**110%**_ ," Jayden argued as he continued to get up. "I always have and I always will. You know that."

Ji's stern face fell, as he remembered, "Of course. I know it all too well."

"And maybe I am pushing myself too hard, but I'm the Red Ranger now. I have to be the best and keep getting better," Jayden continued.

Ji remembered when Jayden first met Antonio in kindergarten. Ji remembered when Jayden's parents and Antonio's mom died in that huge car crash when Jayden was seven years old _**(and Antonio was eight)**_ , when Ji was named the guardian of both boys ever since. He remembered when the Lion Zord chose Jayden when he was fifteen, and how determined Jayden was to avenge his older sister Lauren after he heard about the incident.

But ever since birth, Jayden would always give projects _**(and whatnot)**_ all he had. He was determined and was able to stay so focused, no matter what his goal was, and he truly knew how to effectively lead a team. Really, it was no wonder the Lion Zord chose him.

But there was a side of Jayden, a gentle, soft, and genuinely kind side of Jayden that he had barely shown the others _**(if at all)**_ , that allowed him to still have fun, that allowed him to stay friends with Antonio, that allowed him to listen to and help Emily bring the team together.

Again, it was no wonder the Lion Zord chose him.

Ji knew Jayden inside and out _**(as did Antonio)**_ , and he knew that Jayden wanted to be alone right now, and that he didn't want the others barging in on this special training session _**(and that he didn't want them to worry about him)**_.

So, he conceded.

"Very well, good luck, Jayden. I'll take care of the others."

By now, Jayden had gotten to his feet and retrieved his Spin Sword from Ji.

As Ji walked away, he heard Jayden reply, "Thank you."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

Mike re-entered the House after Ji took him outside to talk to him.

"Hey, guys," he said. "Guess what?"

"Ji ratted you out for sleeping in?" Kevin guessed. "Again?"

"Haha," Mike replied sarcastically, before excitingly saying, "No, Ji has just told me he wants us to take the rest of the day off. All five of us, including Antonio." He added in a little smile near the end.

"Really?" Antonio asked. "This isn't a joke?"

"Really," Mike confirmed.

"But, we just started our workout," Kevin gently argued before kicking the nearby punching bag to prove his point.

"You're telling me you want to disobey a direct order from your Samurai mentor?" Mike asked, raising an eyebrow at his supposed rival _**(he and Kevin never really got along fully, but they knew they could count on each other)**_.

"'Direct order'?" Kevin repeated. "I guess not."

"Hmm, what to do?" Mia asked herself. "I could go shop for shoes that aren't meant for fighting Nighlock, or I could catch a flick."

"But it's such a beautiful day out," Emily argued. "It'd be a shame to stay cooped up inside. Besides, we're a team now. We should be doing things together."

"Em, I can teach you how to shred," Mike offered.

"Actually, I was thinking of that new amusement park that opened up on Holton Avenue," Emily quickly replied.

"Rainbow's End?" Antonio offered.

"Yeah," Emily answered. That was the name she was thinking of. "There are no amusement parks where I'm from."

"Really?" Mike somehow didn't believe that.

"Really," Emly confirmed. "Greenwood is all countryside, nothing but farms and ranches for miles."

"Rainbow's End is a good idea, Em," Antonio said. "I'm in."

"Yeah, me too," Mike agreed. "It'll be nice to teach you and Kevin here how to properly ride a roller coaster."

" _Hey!_ "

But Kevin's protest went ignored. "Why not? I'm in, too," Mia agreed. "It'll be good for teamwork."

It took Kevin a minute to realize he was the only one left. "Okay, I guess I'm in too."

"Yay! Let's go!"

And Emily led the way.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Rainbow's End, Panorama City, California**

With the sounds of fun and happiness, and carnival music filling their ears, Kevin, Mia, Mike, Antonio, and Emily _**(in their civilian clothes)**_ happily entered the amusement park, Rainbow's End.

"Yeah! We're here, guys! Now, let's go!" Mike said, leading the team through the park.

But complete happiness wasn't exactly the truth. Emily was a little upset that Jayden wasn't with them. She had turned to Antonio for reassurance, and she felt a little better in knowing she wasn't the only one of their group who missed Jayden.

"I wonder why Jayden didn't come," Kevin pondered.

"No idea," Mia offered some suggestions. "Maybe he's upset about something."

Despite how upset she was that Jayden wasn't here with them for their day off, Emily responded with, "He must be training. What he's training for, no idea, but it must be very important for him not to take a break and join us."

How she could remain so optimistic, even when things were the worst, was beyond them.

Kevin seemed to agree and they walked in comfortable silence for about thirty more seconds before he burst, "Hold it! A Samurai never takes a day off! What if this is a test?!"

"Calm down," Antonio said. "Ji wouldn't be so careless. If he wanted us to stay, he would have said so."

As Kevin took deep breaths, they heard Emily add, "And I don't think Jayden will ever take a break until every single Nighlock in the Sanzu River is defeated. That's just the kind of guy he is."

Mike nodded, agreeing with Emily, if only to get this party started. "Yeah. Now, let's go, you stick in the mud. The rides are a-waitin'!"

It wasn't long before Emily and Antonio found a claw machine, attracted to a little stuffed lion keychain inside. The two looked at each other, both obviously thinking the same thing. They had to get that stuffed lion keychain for Jayden.

But Emily was no expert on these claw machines, and Antonio had tried and failed three times before Mike had come up to them and offered to get it for them.

Kevin took this as the perfect opportunity to talk to Mia.

"Mia? You're not okay, so don't bother lying to me," Kevin said to her, quietly, "Tell me what's really wrong."

"Emily has a reason for fighting against the Nighlock, as does Mike, and assumingly Jayden and Antonio do too. I know your reason very well, almost personally, but it's not mine."

"You still regret your choice for becoming a Ranger?" Kevin asked, and Mia nodded. "Mia, do you trust me?"

"Teamwork has nothing to do with this," Mia argued. "I can get behind that, no problem. I just don't have my own reason for fighting."

"I don't care about that," Kevin interrupted her, seemingly angry. "Whether or not you have your own reason is not my business. It's all yours and you're allowed to take your time for finding your reason for fighting. What I do care about is that it's been four days since we have joined the team, four days that you have felt this way. I am your best friend, Mia, and I have been since kindergarten. Why wouldn't you trust me enough to tell me about your problems?"

Mia opened her mouth to respond, but to no avail. No words came out.

Kevin was right. He didn't care that her problem went against her words four days ago, when the two joined the team. What he cared about the most was that she went against their friendship, the trust they had built since kindergarten.

A few screams interrupted her train of thought and the conversation between the other three. They stood there, confused, until someone yelled out, "Monster!"

Their eyes nearly popped out of their heads, but that was their cue. The four Rangers headed off into battle, Emily being forced to leave the lion keychain still inside the claw machine.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square, Panorama City, California**

"Humans are such a waste of space," today's Nighlock commented, pointing his gun at a group of innocent civilians on the ground. "Time to crank up the fun to a higher caliber."

He fired a few times, but all his shots _**(colored with red energy)**_ were successfully and easily deflected by the Green and Blue Rangers.

"Leaping lizards! the Samurai Rangers!" He exclaimed, as the Yellow and Pink Rangers rushed in behind the two male Rangers and ushered the civilians to a safer location. "I guess I should introduce myself, I am Action Commander Dreadhead."

"You know, your hair is so dreadful, it needs a trim!" Green said, leaping up and taking a swing.

Mike didn't understand what had just happened. He had a solid hit on Dreadlock. His sword wasn't going to miss, but it went right through him.

Dreadhead hit Mike twice before sending him to the ground. The other three Rangers called out his name before rushing forward to fight Dreadhead for him.

All three Rangers swung their swords at the same time, but they went right through the Nighlock too.

"What the-?" Kevin asked, before Dreadhead took a shot at them. The blast all three square in the chest and they landed on the ground right next to Mike.

"Our Spin Swords don't work on this creep!" Mike exclaimed, realizing what was happening now.

"But how is that possible?" Kevin asked.

Mike shrugged before the two leapt over Dreadhead in order to try and attack from behind.

"The truth is," Dreadhead explained, the four Rangers continued to strike at him, "you guys ain't so popular now, 'cause your Swords ain't got no mojo."

"There's nothing we can do!" Emily annonced.

"What's this monster made of?" Mia asked.

"Mostly red fur," Mike commented, before Dreadhead leapt off to the side and blasted all four Spin Swords out of their hands. He continued firing at their chests, only stopping when their swords finally hit the ground.

The four Rangers fell the ground in front of their Swords, which were lying on the ground a couple of feet away.

In the beat of silence, Dreadhead blew the smoke that was coming from the head of his gun. "There we go. Now, that's a bit more like it. Now, let's pretend you're all blades of grass, and guess who gets to be the lawn mower."

The four ducked their heads when he pointed is gun at them. He was about to fire when he heard, "Surprise!"

But he never flinched, because he knew the Red Ranger's attack wouldn't be able to touch him.

Jayden struck him a few more times, but still no avail. "Hey, what gives?" He demanded to know. Jayden turned to look at the Nighlock behind him.

"Oh man," Mike groaned. "Jayden's Sword won't work either. It really is hopeless."

Jayden attacked Dreadhead a couple more times, before the gun was pointed right at his chest. "An alligator is useless without its teeth. See ya later!"

But Jayden back-flipped missing the blasts from the gun and using a kick to kick it out of Dreadhead's hands.

Jayden stood up as the other four joined him.

"Guys, let's use our swords and attack together," Jayden ordered, hooking up his Red Lion Disk to the hilt of his Sword. The other four did the same with their own respective Disks before spinning them.

 _ **"Spin Sword: Quintuple Slash!"**_

All five strikes hit him square in the chest. All five Rangers saw it with their own eyes, and there was a beat of silence where Dreadhead was stumbled over, holding the place where the combined attack hit him, as if he was hurt.

 _Did they finally hurt him?_

An explosion occurred in that specific area.

"Got him!" Jayden announced.

But Dreadhead quickly recovered, "Haha! Stop, that tickles!" he said, before firing his gun once more, relentlessly this time.

Jayden summoned his Fire Smasher just in time for the said weapon to take the hits instead of him and his team, the four of whom had ducked and cowered behind him.

"Sorry, but you can't faze me," Dreadhead may have been taunting them, but he made a good point. "So all that's left for you know is the crying!" And Dreadhead went back to firing his gun at them.

In the midst of the fury of blasts, Jayden never lowered his Fire Smasher. But he did reach down for his belt buckle, before pulling it open and retreiving the Beetle Disk from within.

"Woah, what is that?" he heard Mia ask.

Jayden didn't reply. He was too busy wondering if he really should use it or not, if it really was safe for him to use, if he really was ready, if Ji was right earlier.

"Oww!" Dreadhead's blasts finally stopped when they all heard a large crack reverberate throughout the area. "It feels like I ate cactus needles, I'm dryin' out! Next time, you won't be so lucky! Later, Rangers!"

And Dreadhead was gone in a flash of red.

The other four Rangers heavily sighed in relief as Jayden looked back at the Beetle Disk he didn't use, but could have.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

The meeting room a very dull atmosphere. There were no smiles, not even encouraging or false ones. There was no sort of happiness whatsoever.

"Man...we got our butts kicked..." Mike said, sitting down in his chair around the Gap Sensor table.

"I don't mean to sound like that Nighlock, but our Spin Swords and Symbol Power, were, well...useless," Mia added, still feeling guilty about her doubt in Kevin earlier.

"No," Emily said aloud, refusing to allow her team to quit here. "We have to keep going. We have to find a way. There's too much at stake to give up here. We're a team. We have to trust each other."

"Emily's right," Antonio replied. "And I think I may have found a way to beat Dreadhead. The Beetle, Swordfish, Tiger, Octo, and Claw Disks can be used to unlock the Fire Smasher's Cannon Blast Mode."

This immediately brought Jayden's attention to the current conversation.

"But these Zords are either lost or damaged," Mike recited from memory. "We know."

"Actually, Mike," Jayden finally spoke aloud. "There's still one of those that we still have." This was when he finally revealed the orange Disk to the others. "This is the Beetle Disk, the Disk that contains the Beetle Zord."

Ji continued for Jayden, "There was once an incident about a decade ago, where his and other previous masters were brutally defeated. The Beetle Zord was the only one who came back to the Shiba House right after."

"Great," Mike said. "So we can unlock Cannon Mode. But, why didn't you use it earlier?" He asked that last question to Jayden.

Jayden was silent after that. He hesitated in speaking a single word that explained his hesitation earlier. But he finally did speak, it was these words that threw the others off-guard, "Next time. I won't let you down. I promise."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

"Man, if I had another quart of that evil water in me," Dreadhead explained, as Octoroo poured more Sanzu Water on him, "those useless Rangers would've been through."

"No joke," Octoroo said. "You needed that soak."

"I'm fine now," Dreadhead replied. "Now, leave me be, Noodleface."

"Don't worry," Octoroo said. "That water will be charge you up in no time. And it's General Octoroo to you. Don't forget the chain of command."

"You know, we would've already owned the human world if you hadn't dired up like a pathetic prune," Dayu couldn't help but comment.

"You don't own doodly," Dreadhead upright insulted her, cuasing Dayu to strike the wrong string on her Harmonium.

"What was that?" She growled fiercely.

"Woah, woah," Octoroo quickly stepped in. "Can't we all just get along?"

Dayu stepped forward, aiming to get back at Dreadhead for what he said to her.

"Dayu!" the said General stopped at the sound of Master Xandred's voice. "Let it go! Let's allow Dreadhead some time to relax before we send him back out again. The way he had those humans running and screaming was glorious! Thanks to him the Sanzu River is rising, and there's nothing those pesky Rangers can do to stop him!"

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Isolated Training Area, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

Mia felt that Jayden would try and train himself to death because of the Beetle Disk. As she watched him fall backwards to the ground for the third time that night, she knew she had to do something.

Jayden was about to get up and grab his Fire Smasher so he could go again, but Mia calmly held him down.

"Don't try to get up, Jayden," she said, holding out an ice-cold water bottle. "You need to rest."

"No, I can't," he protested. "Emily's right. The whole world is counting on us. We can't fail our mission."

"I know," she agreed, catching off-guard now. "Emily's right about a lot of things, though, like the fact that we need to trust and help each other too. We're a team now. We might as well start acting like one. Otherwise, we're just as bad as the Nighlock."

"Yeah," Jayden softly replied. "That's also right...Maybe, the world would be a better and much safer place if we followed Emily's example a little better."

"Why not start right now?" Mia offered, holding out the water bottle to him.

Jayden smiled and nodded, before accepting the water bottle from her.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square, Panorama City, California**

 _ **May 9, 2014**_

It was the next morning.

"There's no use running!" Dreadhead taunted. "I'm gonna flatten this place like a pancake!"

A gust of pink-colored wind stopped the Nighlock and knocked him backwards.

He looked back to see an un-morphed Mia flipping her Samuraizer off to her side, a stern look on her face, as well as the others'.

"Hey, Useless!" Kevin yelled.

"Hey, that's my word!" Dreadhead yelled back before aiming his gun at them again.

 _ **"Go, Go, Samurai!"**_ The force from their morph gave the four Rangers a brief shield before they had to resort to using their Spin Swords to block the blasts.

The four leapt up and attacked, but their Swords were easily blocked by Dreadhead's gun.

Emily, Mike, and Mia struck at the Nighlock once again, but Dreadhead easily forced them onto the ground, before turning around and catching Kevin in the act of leaping up, intent on using his Hydro Bow.

A red-colored energy blast hit Kevin square in the chest, knocking him onto the ground.

But as soon as Kevin got back to his knees, Dreadhead's gun was pointed at his chest again. "No point in trying to stand up when you're just gonna fall back down, dude."

"Kevin!" Mia yelled out.

But Kevin bowed his head, as if accepting his fate.

That is, until the mini Lion Zord used a force never seen before and sent Dreadhead straight to the ground.

Kevin was joined by the other three as they all looked at where Lion was reunited with his master, Jayden, fully morphed, with the Fire Smasher in his hand and ready to go.

"It's Jayden!" Mike said, a hint of relief in his voice, as Emily placed a gentle, comforting hand on Kevin's shoulder.

Dreadhead stood up to face Jayden one-on-one, the Fire Smasher slung over the latter's shoulder.

"What's this?" Dreadhead rolled his eyes. "That big blade of yours ain't buying you no respect from me. If you wanna tangle in this mess too, suit yourself." And the Nighlock stepped back, ready and waiting for Jayden to attack.

The air immediately became silence and intense.

"Careful, Jayden!" Mia called out.

"Well, I'm a-waitin'," Dreadhead calmly said.

But Jayden still said nothing.

Now, Dreadhead was getting a little impatient. "What's keepin' ya, scaredy cat?"

"Why won't he charge?" Kevin asked.

"C'mon, Jayden!" Mike encouraged, remembering the promise Jayden gave to them. "Go for it!"

 _Because it was better to try and fail than not try at all. They understood that._

And with that, Jayden opened his belt buckle and revealed the Beetle Disk. He was about to grab it, but his hand stopped, hovering right over it.

Mia lowered her sword from her shoulder and her head upon watching Jayden train all night with that Disk. He was making progress, but was it enough.

"I know why he's holding back," Emily muttered to the others, who said nothing, the scene being too intense for a conversation.

He was afraid he would break his promise to them, to not let them down. He was afraid of failing, of disappointing his team.

"Sheesh," Dreadhead said, "I've seen glaciers than move faster than you." and he aimed his gun right at the Red Ranger.

"Jayden!" Kevin and Emily both simultaneously.

"Smash 'em, Jay!" Mike continued with the encouragement.

Jayden glanced at them briefly before looking back at Dreadhead.

"Hey, statue!" Dreadhead called for the Red Ranger's attention. "Is that all you've got?!" His gun was now held out in front of him.

 _"JAYDEN!"_

A combined yell of Kevin, Mia, Mike, and Emily all yelling at him out of fear for his life finally snapped his out of his train of doubt.

'I've gotta try,' he thought to himself, before finally taking the Beetle Disk out of his belt buckle and hooking it up to his Fire Smasher.

 _ **"Fire Smasher: Cannon Blast Mode!"**_

Dreadhead stumbled backwards due to the strong force of the fire that erupted from the Ranger's weapon.

Jayden struggled to keep it under control.

When the cloud of fire dissipated, the other Rangers noticed that his Fire Smasher looked different, kind of like a cannon. _**(Then again, that was the point, right?)**_

"Wow, now that's hot!" Mike commented.

"Guys, I need your Power Disks!" Jayden called, holding up his Lion Disk for clarification on which Disks he needed.

"Right!"

"On it!"

After Jayden loaded his Lion Disk, Kevin loaded his Dragon disk, Mia her Turtle Disk, Mike his Bear Disk, and finally, Emily loaded her Ape Disk, saying, "Sure hope this helps."

"Watcha got there? Rainbow Pea Shooter?" Dreadhead asked, as the five Rangers all stood in their usual formation _**(Pink, Green, Red, Blue, and Yellow)**_.

"Nope, _**Five-Disk Beetle Cannon!**_ " Jayden corrected, the other four Rangers kneeling on one knee.

"Useless pile of junk!" Dreadhead yelled before firing his gun one more time.

 _ **"Fire Strike!"**_

Jayden pulled the trigger, the energy from the five Disks forming an energized orange-colored Beetle.

The Beetle hit Dreadhead hard.

"My dreadlocks feel like leadlocks," Dreadhead complained, orange lightning surrounding him. "This can't be happening!"

Dreadhead's first life was destroyed in an explosion.

"Righteous!" Mike exclaimed.

"We did it!" Emily celebrated too.

"Woah, hold up on the celebrating," Jayden warned. "There's still Round 2."

Cue Dreadhead's second _**(and giant)**_ life forming.

"Hi, Rinky-dink Rangers!"

"That's a whole lot of dread," Mike exclaimed, the Rangers going on the offensive.

 _ **"Samuraizers!"**_

 _ **"Lion Flding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Dragon Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Turtle Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Bear Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ape Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ready! Zords Combine! Samurai Megazord, We Are United!"**_

"Time to give you a haircut!" Mike commented, as they unsheathed their Swords in the cockpit, the Megazord doing the same.

The Megazord swung down, but once again, the sword went right through the Nighlock.

"What? It didn't work!" Jayden exclaimed.

"Your sword still had no effect on me!" Dreadhead pointed his gun at the Megazord and fired, causing the Megazord to drop to its knee. "You're all cruisin to a-loosin'!"

"We need to try something else," Jayden urged, before holding up the Beetle Disk. "I think it's time to unleash the true power in this Disk."

"The Beetle Zord?" Mia asked.

"Exactly," Jayden confirmed, before taking off the Red Lion Disk the hilt of his Sword and then hooking up the Beetle Disk instead.

 _ **"Summon Beetle Zord!"**_ Jayden called, spinning the orange-colored Power Disk on his Sword's hilt.

"What?!" Dreadhead was confused as the orange-colored Beetle Zord landed in front of the Samurai Megazord.

"I'll be right back!" Jayden told the other Rangers, before jumping out of the Megazord cockpit in a red flash of light and landing in the Beetle Zord cockpit instead.

He placed his Spin Sword in the stand beside before motioning the Beetle Zord to go.

"Don't think you can bug me with your roach coach contraption," Dreadhead said, firing his gun at the little Zord. But the Beetle Zord kept going.

"Well, things are about to get real buggy for you, buddy," Jayden said, as the Beetle Zord grabbed a firm hold on Dreadhead's leg.

"Hey, quit pulling my leg!"

"This spin move is sure to make you flip!" Jayden spun the Beetle Disk on the hilt of his Sword still locked in the stand beside him.

With that, the Beetle Zord threw Dreadhead several feet away from them, sending the Nighlock to the ground.

"Yes, we got him!" Mike exlciamed.

"Giant Marauders! Move in and give 'em the business!" Dreadhead called, prompting some giant Marauders to spawn and get in on the fight. "On the count of three." Some Marauders drew back their arrows. "One, two-!"

 _ **"Beetle Cannon!"**_ But Jayden and the Beetle Zord beat them to it. Jayden pulled out his Sword from the stand. "Now, the real battle begins."

Jayden spun the Beetle Disk, lifting up the Zord into the air.

 _ **"Samurai Artillery!"**_ The Beetle Zord shifted its parts in order for it to fit onto the Megazord. "Useless, huh? Let's hear you say that after you see this."

Jayden joined them back in the main cockpit.

"Time to go for it," he said to the others, who nodded in understanding.

 _ **"Beetle Blaster Megazord, Armed for Battle!"**_ All five called out.

"W-Wha...?"

A new Megazord? Dreadhead was confused.

The new Megazord pointed its sword at the Marauders, and immediately they all stumbled back.

"Don't back down!" Dreadhead ordered. "Get 'em!"

And the Marauders charged, some firing arrows at them.

 _ **"Beetle Cannon!"**_

The powerful blasts easily destroyed the arrows and the archers. But out of the smoke and fire, the rest of the Marauders charged forwards.

With a few strikes of the sword and another burst of the Beetle Cannon, the Rangers easily took care of the rest.

The Megazord turned back to Dreadhead.

"Your turn," Jayden said.

"Are you guys dumb?" The Nighlock asked. "Your sword's useless against me!"

The Rangers sheathed their Swords, the Megazord following their example.

"Gotcha!" Dreadhead cheered and firing at them again, thinking he had caught them off-guard.

But another blast of the Beetle Cannon easily unarmed him, instead of them, sending his gun to the ground.

The Rangers unsheathed their Swords again, but this time the Megazord did not do the same. Instead, it kneeled on one knee, and the Beetle hat it was wearing closed up. The Rangers spun the Disks on the hilts of their Swords, the Beetle Disk hooked up to Jayden's.

 _ **"Katana Power: Rotating Beetle Blaster!"**_

The rotating Beetle helmet the Megazord was wearing finally gathered enough energy.

 _ **"Beetle Cannon Strike!"**_

A downwards slash unleashed all that energy, destroying Dreadhead once and for all.

"That was epic!" Mike exclaimed with excitement.

"Welcome back to the family, Beetle Zord," Jayden said.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Rainbow's End, Panorama City, California**

"I'm really glad Mentor Ji gave us another day off," Mia said.

"Well, it's only fair since our last one involved us fighting a Nighlock," Mike said, before Mia pulled Kevin over to the side aways off.

"I'd like to apologize, Kevin, for yesterday," Mia said quietly.

"Mia, I-" But she stopped him from saying anything else.

"I do trust you, and I'm sorry for not telling you before, but I've found a reason now, a reason for staying on the team."

"You have?" Kevin asked, now curious as to what it was.

"I have."

"What is it?" He asked.

"It's personal," was all she said.

"I hope everyone's in the mood for some cotton candy!" Emily called out to them, three servings of pink cotton candy in her hand, Jayden not far behind her with three more.

Emily handed two of hers to Kevin and Mia, while Jayden his other two to Mike and Antonio.

"This really isn't aligned with my training diet, Samurai or swimming," Kevin commented.

"It'll be fine," Jayden reassured.

"Yeah, man, you won't die," Mike added.

"You know, I like this," Emily spoke up. "All of us, not fighting, just getting to know each other a little better."

"It'll help us improve our teamwork," Jayden added. "Because we may have our differences, and different reasons for being here and being a Ranger, but we all fight to make the world a safer place. And isn't that what really matters in the end?"

He snuck a smile at Emily, who returned it with a bubbly smile of her own.

"Right," Mia agreed, before repeating the same words from last night when she was taking care of Jayden. "We are a team. We might as well start acting like one. Otherwise, we're no better than the Nighlock."

"We help and comfort each other," Antonio began, sneaking a glance at Mike, who knew exactly what he was thinking.

"And we help each other grow into better people by taking them out of their comfort zone," Mike added.

Then, both Mike and Antonio grabbed a hold of Kevin's arms, on either side of the Blue Ranger.

"Now, c'mon, you stick in the mud," Mike continued. "The rides are this way."

Jayden, Mia, and Emily let out a laugh as they watched Antonio and Mike pull Kevin towards the largest roller coaster in the park.

Mia looked over at Jayden and Emily sneaking yet another glance at each other. She smirked at the possible implications. _**(Did Emily have a crush on Jayden? Maybe. Did Jayden have a crush on Emily? Maybe.)**_

But to help and support her teammates? She could do that. Her reason for fighting was the same as everyone else's, but her reason for staying with the team was unique.

From now on, Mia would make sure the others were well rested, well fed, and do everything she could to make sure they were comfortable, yet still effectively learned their lesson.

 _ **Like a mother would.**_

And she was no different with the little kids she used to teach.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _ **Original Shinkenger Episode: Act 5**_

 _ **Original PRS Episode: Day Off**_

 **Note: And there you have it. The Core Five have finally reached true team status! If any of you have ideas or things you want me to add/consider adding, PM me.**

A/N: Do review, please. **If you guys have any ideas you want me to consider adding, please PM me.** A preview for the next chapter:

 _ **Season 1, Episode 6:**_ _"Sticks and Stones"_

 _"It was a Power Up Mode, one that would help them beat the Nighlock, but Emily's the only one who can beat this Nighlock bully. Will she succeed or end up underground like the others?"_


	6. 6: Sticks and Stones

A/N: I hereby present to you all my own version (yes, another one) of Power Rangers: Samurai. It does have a much darker theme to it than Saban's version (which I do not hate, as you can obviously tell by my other PR stories). There were some flaws, yes, and I'm still going to use some terms you are familiar with.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Power Rangers Samurai or Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. I just own most of the plot and the characters and things you don't recognize from the original version.

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _"It was a Power Up Mode, one that would help them beat the Nighlock, but Emily's the only one who can beat this Nighlock bully. Will she succeed or end up underground like the others?"_

 **Better Together**

 _ **Power Rangers: Samurai REDO**_

 **Season 1, Episode 6:** _Sticks and Stones_

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

 _ **May 10, 2014**_

She was back in the forest, the last place on earth she wanted to be right now.

She constantly turned to look behind her, to see if the wolves were chasing her.

 _ **"Run! They're right on our tail!"**_

She heard her elder sister's voice again, telling her to run.

But _why_? Why was Serena telling her to run? What was she trying to warn Emily about?

Emily's heart jumped when she heard a wolf howl. She didn't bother to look behind her to see some hungry, angry wolves growling at her. She didn't have to.

Emily woke up a start and a scream, back in the bedroom she was given when she moved into the Shiba House.

Sunlight shone in through her bedroom window. It was just a dream. That's it, just a dream. There was nothing to worry about. As far as everyone in the world was concerned, the house and the wolves were nothing more than a figment of her imagination. _**(But that still didn't explain why Ape Zord said she could see the house too. Oh, well, she could worry about that later.)**_

Emily got dressed in blue jean shorts, a white tank top with a yellow-flowered design, a yellow elbow-length sleeved cardigan, and yellow converses on her feet, all while being unable to ponder about what keeps happening in her dreams.

She's always being chased by wolves straight to that house, and she really needed to know why, before her mental health collapsed completely.

Emily tried hard to put it in the back of her mind when she ran into Ji right outside the kitchen.

"Ah, Emily, I have found something that may improve our chances of defeating the Nighlock," Ji explained to her, as she listened with all of her willpower, determined not to get sidetracked due to her strange, nightmare-ish dreams. "Gather around the Gap Sensor map table, and we'll start our meeting in a few minutes. As soon as I wake up Mike..."

Emily nodded and found herself walking to the said table and taking a seat, absentmindedly.

"Morning, Emily," Mia greeted. Emily nodded back at her with a little smile, her mind still preoccupied with you-know-what. But she didn't speak a word.

About three to four minutes passed before Mike came out, with Ji, but it didn't take long after that for their dear Mentor to get started.

He began by opening an old book he got from the bookshelf against the wall.

On the page he had opened up to was a sketch of two versions of Jayden's Ranger form, one male and the other female. But they looked different and not at all like the Ranger form they were used to morphing into. The helmets were different _**(they both had mouth pieces)**_ , the Reds in the sketch were wearing sashes with the Ranger emblem on it _**(that hung from their left shoulders and all the way down to their right waists, and were tucked on their belts)**_ , both had fishnet sleeves and no black stripes around the armbands, and their belt buckles were replaced with the Lion Zord in Defense Mode. The only difference was that the female version also had a skirt, as well as what looked like thigh-high stockings.

But most importantly, neither had a sheath for their Spin Swords. In fact, in the sketch, there were no Spin Swords whatsoever. Instead, they were each holding two fire-enhanced daggers in their hands.

Mike and Kevin leaned in closer, all six of them _**(including Antonio, aside from Ji)**_ deeply interested in what this mode was.

"Woah..." Mike muttered.

"What is this?" Mia had the sense to ask.

"The ultimate form of your Ranger powers," Ji answered, "the _Samurai Havoc Mode_."

"Samurai Havoc Mode?" Kevin asked.

"Correct," Ji nodded, confirming Kevin's response, before continuing on. "Once received, you will be able to train with your Zord and make it even stronger. The one pictured here is the Red Ranger's Havoc Mode, both male and female versions. The _Twin Fire Daggers_ , pictured here, are the ultimate weapon of the Red Ranger."

"How can we unlock this mode?" Mia asked the question everyone wanted to know.

And Ji answered with a solemn, "Only by an act of amazing courage. And the feelings must be genuine."

Mike piped up and asked, "How will our powers know if we were courageous enough or not?"

"The sources of your powers are the Zords themselves," Ji replied, as if the answer was that simple. "Since they are sentient beings, they will be able to easily tell."

There was no way Emily would be able to unlock hers. She wasn't good enough. She never would be.

She could already hear Dylan's mean insults from kindergarten, Samantha's snobby boasts from third grade, Gianna's obnoxious laughs from fifth grade, and the Hunter twins' _**(one male, the other female)**_ rude taunts from eighth grade, all of them ringing in her ear.

They kept telling her that she would definitely be the last to unlock her Havoc Mode, if she managed to unlock it at all.

"W-What if you're not able to unlock yours?" Emily asked, her voice visibly shaking, unable to drive her bullies' taunts out of her mind.

"It is entirely up to you," Ji replied. "They are your powers, regardless of what your teammates think."

Despite Ji's warm, honest answer, Emily unfortunately didn't feel any better.

"You okay, Em?"

Emily's heart jumped again when Mike asked her this. She gripped the edge of her seat, before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine," she answered before standing up and heading towards the front door. "I just need some air."

She hoped dearly that they were oblivious to the fact that her smile was clearly fake.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

Octoroo was reading one of his books when he heard someone come aboard the ship. He leaned over to see who it was.

"Oh, it's the Prince of Put-Downs himself! Action Commander Negatron!" He exclaimed. "Welcome aboard!"

"Speaking of _'aboard'_ ," Negatron began, "that's what I feel every time I see you! I'm a-bored–!"

But Octoroo had covered his big mouth with his hand.

"If you want to make that special power of yours extremely useful," he told Negatron, "then save those insults for the humans. That sharp tongue of yours will make those crybabies wail."

"That's my plan," Negatron replied. "But you're so–!"

Octoroo quickly covered his mouth again. "Your mouth is like a convenience store: always open. Make yourself useful to the Master and make the River flood the earth."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

Antonio volunteered to go outside to see if Emily was okay, after they let her be alone for a few minutes.

The first thing Antonio noticed was the gentle, hauntingly beautiful flute tune Emily was playing.

The second was how expertly her fingers moved to get the correct notes. Really, Emily was playing that wooden flute like she had played it ever since she was little.

He patiently waited for her to finish her song _**(which didn't take all that long)**_ before he spoke up.

"You okay now, Em?" Antonio was afraid to hurt or insult her, so his voice was gentle and hesitant when he did speak.

"Playing my sister's old flute has always calmed me down," Emily softly explained, from the bench she was sitting on, her back to him. "So, a bit..."

"You sure?" Antonio asked, not entirely believing her.

Emily didn't object when Antonio sat down next to her. "Not entirely," she answered with complete honesty. "But I'll be okay."

"You want to tell me why you walked out on us?" He asked, wanting her to be open with her problems.

"I didn't want to," Emily almost sounded like she was tearing up. "But I didn't want you guys to see how weak I really am."

"What do you mean 'weak'?" Emily was one of the strongest people he knew, right after Jayden and Ji. And he wasn't talking about physical strength.

"I'll be the last one to unlock Havoc Mode," Emily finally admitted, her hazel eyes filled with unfallen tears. "Just watch. Dylan will be right about me being a crybaby. Samantha will be right about me being too stupid. Gianna will be right about me being too clumsy to do anything right. Justin Hunter will be right about me being an easy target of everyone's insults, and his sister Claire will be right about me being mentally insane."

"You were bullied." Antonio obviously hit a nerve, because Emily didn't give him a verbal response. She only nodded. "But what was that last part about being 'mentally insane'?"

Emily was quiet for the longest time, as if hesitant to tell him what that really meant. "Antonio, can you keep a secret?"

"Of course," he replied, wanting her to confide in him. "I mean, I keep the secret about you guys being Power rangers from civilians all the time."

"No!" Emily immediately backed off from her yelling, like she was a dog that was being punished. "I-I mean, from the other Rangers too?"

Antonio paused, really thinking about that asked him to do, against the others' wishes, against Jayden's especially, to be a complete team. And that meant that no secrets were to be kept from each other.

"Yeah," but if helped make Emily's personal burden lighter, then he would not hesitate.

"I know you'll find this crazy," Emily began, she herself hesitating in actually telling him the truth, "b-but...I have these dreams..."

"So does everyone else," Antonio interjected when he thought she was done.

"They're not normal," Emily finally revealed the catch. "Some predict the future. Some tell me what happened in the past. And others don't make sense at all."

"Give me some examples," was all Antonio answered with. Her story did seem a little far-fetched, but Emily was no liar. He wanted to believe her, with all his heart and soul.

"O-Okay," Emily stuttered. That wasn't the first time anyone had asked her for proof, but it was the first time it had come from somebody who didn't sound like they wanted to condescend or bully her. "One night, I dreamed I failed a test regarding a subject I was an expert in, and the very next day, my dad died trying to stop a robbery. Umm..." Antonio was silent as she continued giving him examples. "Another night, I had a dream about a couple getting married under an apple tree, which I learned the next day was the exact way the founder of Greenwood married his wife. And umm...lately, I've been dreaming about this house in the forest. It's abandoned and extremely worn down, but...every time I get near it, in the dreams or in real life, I always see wolves attacking me and hear Serena's voice telling me to run away. I don't know what it means, but I'm apparently crazy, because only I can see them."

"How do you know?" He couldn't help but ask.

"Because Jayden couldn't see the wolves. And they were right there, surrounding us."

"That doesn't mean the house is fake too, just the wolves," Antonio reassured her. "But I believe you. We'll figure these puzzles out together, especially why and how this house is connected with your sister."

 _ **(It was in this moment when she began to look at her dreams in a different light. Antonio was right. They were metaphors, puzzles. So what was the significance of there only being**_ _three_ _ **wolves?)**_

"You really mean that?"

Antonio was taken back at how surprised she sounded.

"Of course I mean it," he replied with utter honesty. "Those bullies really messed you up, didn't they?"

Emily didn't answer. She only solemnly, sorrowfully looked down at the ground, not willing to say he was right.

"You'll be the first to unlock Havoc Mode, Em. Just watch." And Emily looked up at him in utter surprise. "I believe in you."

Did she really hear him right? Did she really have someone who believed in her?

 _It seemed like she did._

Her train of thought was interrupted by the Gap Sensor going off.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square, Panorama City, California**

Action Commander Negatron watched, and laughed gleefully, as he watched the old man stumble out of his car and down the street, away from the Nighlock that was clearly attacking. "Yeah, you better run, Eagle Eyes! Go get some glasses!"

"That's enough, Nighlock!" Negatron turned when he heard Jayden speak, to see the five un-morphed Rangers, in standard formation, yet in their civilian forms.

"Who are you, punks?" Negatron asked.

"Anyone ever tell you you're a bully?" Mia asked.

"Yep, nicest thing anyone's ever said about me," the Nighlock boasted.

 _ **"Samuraizers! Go, Go, Samurai!"**_ The five each flipped their respective elemental kanji and all were bathed in rainbow light. When the light dissipated, the five were still standing in the some spots, now morphed in their Ranger suits.

"Ah, Rangers! You're the perfect test subjects for my stone slabs," Negatron replied, as if he didn't have to worry about the Rangers being able to defeat them.

"Stone?" Mike asked.

"Slabs?" Kevin finished for his Green teammate.

Jayden leapt up and struck down at Negatron with his Spin Sword, but the Nighlock easily side-stepped him.

Jayden quickly got back on his feet, not lowering his sword. "What do you mean by that?" Jayden asked.

"All those stupid civilians ran away before I could demonstrate, so allow me to demonstrate on you, Rangers."

"That's a trap!" Mike called him out. "And you know, talking smack about people is not cool!" Mike then charged at the Nighlock.

But Negatron used his Super Speed and met him halfway.

 _ **"You're an immature idiot!"**_ A sharp pang struck Mike's heart, and the others saw dark purple energy surrounding him and pushing him backward into the stadium wall behind him. He fell to the ground, hard, bits of rubble hitting the ground around him.

Emily ran to check on him. "Mike, are you okay?"

Negatron continued, _**"You're annoying, and you're bike had training wheels until you were seven. What a baby!"**_

"Emily, move!" Jayden called out to her.

Emily just barely managed to avoid a giant rectangle-shaped slab made of stone crash down on Mike. When the dust cleared, there was no Mike anywhere in sight, only a giant stone slab where the black top should be, and where Mike was before the stone slab smacked down.

Kevin and Mia turned back to face Negatron, utterly furious. "What did you do to him?!" Mia demanded.

 _ **"And you, Blue Ranger, you're just boring!"**_ Negatron sang the last word, surrounding Kevin in that same dark purple energy and knocking him back in the brick wall behind him.

"Kevin!" Mia turned to him.

But once Kevin hit the ground, Negatron gave him no breathing room. _**"Always the teacher's pet! No one wants a friend so up-tight!"**_

And Mia watched in shock and horror as a stone slab smacked down on Kevin too.

Mia's fist around her Sword tightened. "You're gonna pay for that!" She charged towards Negatron, and swung her Sword, yet missed. She swung her Sword again, at a different angle, but she missed again.

 _ **"You stuck-up!"**_ Mia was blown back by the dark purple energy mid-swing. Once she hit the ground, as glass shards fell around her from the windows she crashed into. _**"Yeah, just give up, you self-centered Prom Queen!"**_

Emily began shaking after she and Jayden witnessed a giant stone slab fall right on top of Mia.

"I don't get how he's doing that!" She cried out, getting up off her knees. "All he's doing is insulting them!"

Jayden stepped in front of her, hooking up the Red Lion Disk up to the hilt of his Spin Sword, "Keep your guard up. He's a tricky one."

And Emily immediately felt… _safe_.

"Come on, what tricks?" Negatron replied, calmly. "I'm just telling the truth. I go by the motto _'if the truth hurts, excellent'_!"

Jayden spun the Lion Disk, ready to fight Negatron. But Negatron sped up and knocked his Sword out of his hand. Jayden tensed, his guard up, as Negatron got up in his face. _**"You cold, heartless monster! How could anyone ever be friends with someone who's so weak?"**_

 _No effect whatsoever._

 _ **'I was apparently a hotspot for mean words,'**_ Emily remembered Jayden saying once.

Kevin had replied with, _**'Because no words could get through to you. They would just bounce off of you.'**_

That meant Emily could count on him to still be around to fight with her. She wouldn't be alone.

"Okay, tough guy," was Negatron's response to this. "How about this? _**You're a red-faced, liar, liar, pants on fire!**_ "

Jayden finally felt the sting of the insult. Emily watched in horror as the dark energy surrounded him and slammed him into the brick wall behind him.

"Jayden!" She called.

The Red Ranger glanced back up just as Negatron continued with the insult that finally got the leader of the Rangers. _**"Can the girl behind you really trust you with that secret you're hiding from her?"**_

"NOO!" Emily cried out as Jayden disappeared under a stone slab as well.

"Now, it's down to weak, little Yellow," Negatron turned to the remained Samurai Ranger on the battlefield.

Emily turned around to face him, tears of anger filling her hazel eyes, despite the fact that her face was hidden behind her helmet. "Your words won't faze me. Jayden's got nothing to hide! You're just a mean-mouthed monster spouting nothing but nonsense!"

And Emily charged at him. She swung and missed repeatedly, as the Nighlock replied, " _'Nonsense'_? If my words weren't true, your friends would still be here!" Emily swung again, and still missed. "This is too easy!" Negatron shouted with glee, enjoying his moment of glory. _**"Airhead!"**_

Emily landed a hit on him.

"What?! Impossible!"

How did she do that?! As long as he could see into his victims' hearts, he was untouchable!

Emily struck him twice more with her Spin Sword. She swung and missed, though, and Negatron took this as the opportunity to get up in her face and say, _**"You're a clumsy fool!"**_

Emily struck him again.

 _ **"Klutz!"**_ Hit. _**"Dimwit!"**_ Another hit. _**"Whiner!"**_ Yet another hit.

The Nighlock hit the ground.

"This girl is crazy!" Negatron muttered to himself, before calling out, "Oh, here's a good one!"

Emily spun her Black Power Disk.

 _ **"Everyone loves to tease you!"**_

 _ **"Earth Slicer!"**_

Negatron stumbled backwards. This wasn't looking good for him.

"You're the one who's lying!" Emily yelled, throwing her giant shuriken at him. Negatron got hit with it approximately three times before he gave up.

"What is your deal?!" Negatron cried, his body smoking from all the hits and damage he sustained from Emily. "Better go vent somewhere else!"

As he retreated back into the Netherworld, through a vent, Emily yelled back at him, her Earth Slicer in her hand, "Yeah, you better run, you coward!"

As she stood there, trying to catch her breath, she remembered that Negatron was the only one who knew what had happened to the others.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

She was back at the Shiba House now. She was rather reluctant to explain what had happened to the others. Ji had a book of Nighlock that had appeared in the Human World before, and with a stroke of good luck, Negatron was in that book, along with a highly detailed explanation of what he meant by _'stone slabs'_.

"He's basically a bully," Ji explained. "He channels mental pain and turns it into physical pain to trap his victim. While they're down, another insult or two brings down the stone slabs on top of the said victim, trapping them underground."

"How are the stone slabs created?" Emily asked, something she really wanted to know.

"According to the book," Ji said, motioning to the mentioned item he was holding, "the slabs are created by the victims themselves. How strong they are and how quickly they fall depends on how trapped the said victim feels by their own insecurities."

"According to the Gap Sensor data, Mike, Kevin, and Mia fell pretty easily," Antonio informed them, as he studied the tablet in his hand. "Jayden took some effort, but Emily was entirely unaffected by his insults. Why?"

"Perhaps, she has some special ability," Ji offered.

"Oh no, no," Emily shook her head, looking down at her feet. "I'm not that great."

"Then why?" Ji asked. "Why were you immune while the others weren't?"

"I think it's because of her low self-esteem," Antonio offered. "Emily already thinks so lowly of herself, so it acts as a shield from Negatron's insults."

Ji turned from Antonio to Emily, shocked that Antonio would say something so insulting. "Emily, tell me he's just making that up."

Emily glanced up at her mentor, a solemn look on her face. "Sorry, I can't. It's the truth. All throughout my life, I've been an easy target for bullies. I was always teased and called names by people who thought they were better than me, and I'd always go home, crying. Eventually, I decided to just accept the fact that I would always be at the bottom of the pyramid, that everyone would always be better than me. Once I accepted that, life got easier, because I finally had a strong enough shield against the insults."

Ji was quiet for a minute _**(Emily had a depressing childhood)**_ , before he changed the subject altogether. "I'm sorry about what you had to go through, Emily, but whatever the case, we need to beat Negatron right away. Get information on how to save the other Rangers, defeat him, and then actually save–"

"No," Emily immediately disagreed. "Right now, there's no guarantee that the others are still alive, nor is there any solid way to tell how much time they have left. Besides, I can't fight him alone. I need my team."

"I have a plan," Antonio cut in, with a simple snap of his fingers.

"What is it?" Emily asked, quite eager to hear it.

"Whatever your plan is, Antonio," Ji replied, a cautious tone in his voice, "remember that the lives of the other four Rangers are at stake. There is no room for errors. And there is no guarantee that your plan will work."

"Don't worry, Ji," Antonio said, using the old man's nickname affectionately _**(because he's been like a surrogate father to him and Jayden both for almost a decade now)**_. "I believe in Emily. She'll make it work, no matter what."

Emily was quiet for a minute, before replying with a smile on her face, "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Antonio, but I can't do it alone."

"I'll help any way I can," Antonio answered. "Whatever you need me for."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

 _ **"Your playing stinks!"**_

Surrounded with dark, purple energy, Dayu smacked into the wall of the ship behind her. "Say that to me again, you three-eyed backstabber, and you'll be taking a long walk off a short plank!" Dayu threw her pick at Negatron, but Octoroo quickly caught it with his staff.

"Oo-ah-oo, take it easy, Dayu!" He tried to calm her down. "We're just testing to see if Negatron's power still works."

"Yeah, I knew I hadn't lost it!" Negatron exclaimed, as Dayu got to her feet. "But I still don't understand why I couldn't hurt that Yellow Ranger girl?!"

"How dare you mock me?!" Dayu made to charge at him, but she was stopped by Xandred's sheathed sword. "You just relax."

Dayu pushed his sword aside. "Not this time!"

But Xandred blocked her again. "That's enough!" He ordered. "Even you can make me mad." He unsheathed his sword by an inch. "Understood?"

"Fine," she said, finally backing down. "But I'm not happy about it!"

"Negatron!" Xandred turned to his present Action Commander. "Thanks to you, the level of the River is definitely rising. So get back out there!"

"Yes, back to work!" Octoroo agreed. "Create more misery!"

"Don't worry, I'll see to it that my words hurt everyone! Even that blasted Yellow Ranger!"

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Harbor Village Park, Panorama City, California**

Antonio and Emily were among the civilians at that park by the sea. Antonio was fishing by the sea _**(using his dad's fishing equipment)**_ , while Emily was rollerblading _**(using her rollerblades from back home**_ ) through the park.

But the second they saw Negatron enter through a Gap, the two leapt into action.

Antonio ushered all civilians nearby back to their homes, while Emily rollerbladed to where Negatron was and stopped right in front of him.

"Not so fast there," Emily told him. "Bullies aren't allowed here."

"Just try and stop me, pathetic Yellow Ranger!"

"Gladly. _**Go, Go, Samurai!**_ " After Emily morphed in a flash of yellow, she ran toward Negatron, unsheathing her sword on the way. "You're going down this time!"

And Emily repeatedly swung her Sword while he spoke next, but missed all those attacks.

"I don't think so! _**Dummy! Klutz! Crybaby!**_ "

Emily stopped mid-swing. "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me! Now, shut your mouth, you creep!" And Emily landed another strike on him.

She reached inside her belt and pulled out her Yellow Ape Disk and hooked it up to her hilt, and spun it. _**"Spin Sword: Earth Kanji Strike!"**_

She laid three yellow energy slashes on him, which knocked him down to the ground.

But he got back up, ready with more insults to hurl at her.

 _ **"Your new friends don't care about you!"**_ Came Negatron's taunt. Emily paused and tensed up. It wasn't going to be easy, letting down her shield against insults, but she had to. _**"They never did and they never will! All they care about is themselves!"**_

There came the sting, but it was small, meaning she had to let more insults through in order for the plan to work.

 _ **"You'll never be as good as they are!"**_

The sting was growing bit by bit, as he hurled insult after insult at her.

 _ **"You're the odd one out of the group! They were close before they met you, and everything was fine until you arrived! You ruined everything for them!"**_

Emily felt herself get blasted backwards into a wall by the dark energy.

Antonio heard Emily cry out in pain. He glanced over to where she and Negatron were fighting, and witnessed the last insult before Emily allowed the stone slab to drag her down.

 _ **"You idiot, you'll never find your sister alive!"**_

Once Emily was nowhere in sight, Negatron walked away, determined to make the entire city fall now that the Rangers were all down. Antonio quickly rushed over to protect the city and its inhabitants while all five Rangers were away.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Underground, Panorama City, California**

"Mike! Mike, wake up!" The Green Ranger opened his brown eyes to Mia's gentle, yet urgent voice.

Mike coughed a couple times before bothering to speak, "We haven't been freed yet?"

"Not yet," Jayden informed them. "And I don't mean to scare you, but we're also running out of air."

"About 3.2 hours left of air, to be exact." They found they could count on Kevin to give them accurate logistics. "And still no word from Emily or Ji. I still can't make a connection."

The four were silent for a moment before Mike scoffed, "So, I guess we know what he meant by _'stone slabs'_ now, huh?"

"Yeah..." Kevin muttered.

There was a low rumble, with began to grow louder and louder, which led to the four realizing that the stone slabs were sinking even lower _**(they were all stacked on top of each other)**_.

Mike cried out in shock. They were going to crush him if he didn't move, but he couldn't move! He was too injured, too tired.

Mike closed his eyes, waiting for the impact. He felt it, but it didn't come from above.

It came from his side.

He re-opened his eyes and when Mia said the name of person who saved him, he knew he wasn't crazy.

"E-Emily!"

Emily was struggling to hold up the stacked stone slabs, but she still managed to turn to them with a smile on her face.

"Hey," was her reply. "Everyone okay? Nothing broken?"

"Nope," Kevin answered. "We're all still here."

Emily's smile never wavered. "Good. Antonio's plan actually worked. Well...part one did."

Which was lowering her personal shield in order to rescue the others. The second part was putting her shield back up, and she wasn't sure how hard that was going to be.

"We're all together. That's a good thing," Mia stated. "But how do we get out of here?"

"Assumedly, the same way we came in," Mike replied, as Kevin helped him stand.

Emily cut in, as she tried to put her shield back up _**(but the slabs weren't getting any lighter)**_ , "It's our insecurities that got us down here in the first place. We need to find a way to reverse them somehow."

"We all have flaws," Jayden quietly, softly said. "But that's why we're a team. Your greatest weakness is somebody else's greatest strength."

 _ **'You're the odd one out of the group! They were close before they met you, and everything was fine until you arrived! You ruined everything for them!'**_

But Jayden once told her, _**'It's okay. You're not intruding.'**_

Negatron was the liar. _He_ was the real enemy, not the others. She had to find a way back to the surface.

And she continued to push up from under the slabs.

Mia nudged the three guys to turn back to Emily, who was now surrounded in a yellow-colored aura.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square, Panorama City, California**

When the smoke cleared, it revealed the other four Rangers, injured from the previous battle, but mainly okay. Antonio rushed over to check on them.

"You guys okay?" Antonio asked them, while helping Jayden back to his feet.

"Yeah, we're fine," Mike replied. "Emily saved us."

"How?" Antonio asked.

"How did you punks escape?!" Negatron demanded.

" _Me_."

Negatron turned around to face Emily, full morphed, but in a mode he hadn't seen before.

First of all her helmet was different _**(the kanji on it was more pronounced and it had a mouth piece)**_. She was also wearing a black sash with the Ranger emblem on it _**(that hung from her left shoulder all the way down to her right waist, and was tucked on her belt)**_ , had dark yellow fishnet sleeves, no black stripes around her armbands _**(with were now completely yellow)**_ , and her belt buckle had been replaced with the Ape Zord in Defense Mode. Her boots were the same, she still had the yellow skirt, but her gloves were now black and she had white-colored thigh-high stockings.

And in her right hand, she was holding a hand-held drill, the _Spiral Earth Drill_.

"She did it!" Antonio exclaims. "Emily unlocked her Havoc Mode!"

Negatron looked behind Emily and saw a tunnel in the middle of the stone slabs, leading directly underground, where the Rangers had been held.

"Why you-!"

"You're done, Negatron!" Emily ordered, as the other four gathered around her _**(Order: Mia, Mike, Emily, Jayden, Kevin)**_. "Even with our flaws, I'd say we still make a good team."

"We make an excellent team," Jayden replied, before pulling out his Samuraizer. "Get out of here, Antonio!"

 _ **"Samuraizers! Go, Go, Samurai!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Fire, Power Ranger Red!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Water, Power Ranger Blue!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Wind, Power Ranger Pink!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Forest, Power Ranger Green!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Earth, Havoc Mode Yellow! Rangers Together–"**_

 _ **"Samurai Forever!"**_

But Negatron was mad. "Yeah, right. More like heartbroken forever! I know some zingers that'll really tear you up! But I'll get you guys later! My business is with Yellow! Marauders!"

The other four rushed over to meet the Marauders halfway, leaving Emily to deal with Negatron.

 _ **"Fire Smasher!"**_ Jayden used the said weapon to take out his group two/three at a time.

 _ **"Sky Fan!"**_ Mia used her wind power to take out her group.

 _ **"Hydro Bow!"**_ Kevin jumped off a balcony nearby and fired a few arrows, taking out his own group.

 _ **"Forest Spear!"**_ Mike used his weapon to fight off his group.

Emily charged at Negatron, despite not having any weapon in her hand _**(still no Spin Sword)**_. He threw a punch at her, but she easily dodged it, before stopping him dead in his tracks by putting her foot against his throat.

"You play dirty, Yellow Ranger!"

"So do you, Nighlock!"

And one simple swift kick with her foot _**(the one against his throat)**_ sent him flying.

His big mouth was the source of his power, Emily realized. So if she could find some way to shut him up, he could be defeated.

Apparently, Mike was thinking the same thing, because all she had to do was call his name once, and he came running.

"I got your back, Em!" Mike said, before using his Spear to unleash a storm of leaves. _**"Forest Spear: Leaf Storm!"**_

Negatron covered his face in order to avoid the leaves, but in that moment, Mike had jumped behind him and was holding him down.

"Let me go, Green Bean!"

"Thanks, Mike!" Emily called, before pulling out her Samuraizer. _**"Symbol Power: Stones!"**_

Mike watched as Negatron's mouth filled up with rocks. He jumped up and landed beside Emily, before giving her a high five.

"Nice one, Em!"

"Thanks for your help."

Negatron mumbled something. They couldn't tell what, because his mouth was filled with rocks.

"Sorry, we can't hear you!" Emily said, as the other three Rangers joined them. "If you can't speak, then you're entirely defenseless."

"Good thinking, Em," Mia said.

"Thanks," Emily replied, before producing her Havoc Mode weapon. _**"Spiral Earth Drill! Charging!"**_

The Drill began to spin, surrounding itself in yellow energy.

Emily charged at Negatron. _**"Spiral Drill Attack!"**_ And she pierced him through the chest. Swiping upwards, Emily stepped back and allowed Jayden to take over.

"I can't defeat him by myself," was all Emily had to say.

"Don't worry. We'll take it from here," Jayden replied, holding up the Beetle Disk.

And Emily smiled at him, from under her helmet.

 _ **"Fire Smasher: Cannon Blast Mode!"**_ He turned to his team. "Lock and load." One by one, all five colored Power Disks were locked into the Cannon. _**"Five-Disk Beetle Cannon!"**_ The other four Rangers knelt, while Jayden took the final strike. _**"Fire Strike!"**_

And with an explosion, Negatron's first life was done.

The other four stood back up, and Mike pat Emily on the head. "Nice job, Emily."

"Thanks!"

Cue Negatron's second _**(and giant)**_ life forming.

"You lame-brained louses!"

The Rangers immediately went on the offensive, as Emily unhooked Ape Zord from her belt.

 _ **"Samuraizers!"**_

 _ **"Lion Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Dragon Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Turtle Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Bear Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ape Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ready! Zords Combine! Samurai Megazord, We Are United!"**_

The Rangers stood in the formation they were in when they morphed a while ago _**(Mia, Mike, Emily, Jayden, Kevin)**_ , and Emily found that she had regained her Spin Sword _**(and the sheath, as she needed her Sword to control the Megazord)**_.

Negatron responded first, with his own attack. _**"Three-Eyed Zap-a-zoid!"**_

Purple lightning hit the Megazord, sending the entire Megazord shaking and making it drop its shield and sword.

Negatron charged, intent on winning this round.

"Time to divide and conquer!" And in a flash of yellow, Emily disappeared from the cockpit and into the Ape Zord's cockpit.

In response, the Ape Zord folded back into Defense Mode and disconnected from the Megazord just seconds before Negatron could force it to separate.

Negatron stumbled as Mike called out, "Nice one, Em. Kickin' it!" Mike kicked, and the right leg of the Megazord _**(the Bear Zord)**_ did the same.

"Hey, Mike! You up for a combo kick!" Emily asked.

"Absolutely! Let's go!"

Still folded into a triangle, the Ape Zord hit the chest of the Megazord before dropping down and allowing the Bear Zord _**(still as the Megazord's foot)**_ to kick it towards Negatron.

The Nighlock blocked it with his sword. "Hey, get outta my face!"

It worked, though, because after a short struggle, the Ape Zord finally forced Negatron to drop his sword.

The Ape Zord re-connected with the Megazord, and in another flash of yellow, Emily was back inside the Megazord cockpit with the others.

"I'm back," she announced, before turning to Jayden. "Ready?

"Born ready," he said, surprising her by handing her the Beetle Disk.

But she took it, after taking off the Yellow Ape Disk the hilt of her Sword _**(which she hooked onto her stand)**_. She then hooked up the Beetle Disk instead.

 _ **"Summon Beetle Zord!"**_ Emily called, spinning the orange-colored Power Disk on her Sword's hilt.

"What is that?" Negatron asked, as the Beetle Zord appeared and landed on the ground in front of the Megazord.

 _ **"Samurai Artillery!"**_ Emily called, the other four ready. The Beetle Zord shifted its parts in order for it to fit onto the Megazord.

 _ **"Beetle Blaster Megazord, Armed for Battle!"**_ All five called out.

Negatron scoffed. "What a dumb hat! What were you thinking?!"

"What do you think of this?" Emily asked, before spinning the Beetle Disk hooked up to her Sword. _**"Beetle Cannon!"**_

The powerful blasts easily caught Negatron off guard.

The Megazord charged, hitting Negatron multiple times before shouldering him in the side.

"I'm not scared of you, you overgrown hunk of tin!" Negatron said, before being shouldered in the side. "Oww!"

"Let's add injury to this Nighlock's insults," Jayden said.

"With pleasure," Emily answered.

The Megazord sheathed its sword, before kneeling on one knee, and the Beetle hat it was wearing closed up. The Rangers spun the Disks on the hilts of their Swords, the Beetle Disk hooked up to Emily's.

 _ **"Katana Power: Rotating Beetle Blaster!"**_

The rotating Beetle helmet the Megazord was wearing finally gathered enough energy.

 _ **"Beetle Cannon Strike!"**_

A downwards slash unleashed all that energy, destroying Negatron once and for all.

 _ **"Samurai Rangers, Victory is Ours!"**_ Jayden announced.

"We did it!" Emily cheered. "We…we…"

The other Rangers' hearts jumped when Emily fell backwards onto the ground, passed out.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Central Park, Panorama City, California**

When Emily came to, she was aware of leaning against someone's back, and that someone was carrying her. She was about to open her eyes, but when she heard the voices of the others, she paused in doing so.

"She said she was fine, but I guess the Nighlock's words hurt her, after all," Mia was saying.

"She had to let some through in order to save you guys," Antonio replied. "But I guess there was a part of her that truly believed what the Nighlock was saying, about not being able to find her sister."

"Either way, she hid the pain well," Jayden gently cut in. "And we'll find her sister."

"Yeah, she doesn't have to worry about that anymore," Kevin said.

"That is what friends are for, right?" Mike asked.

"Yeah," Mia agreed.

And with her eyes still closed, Emily smiled.

"Hey, Jayden?" Mike asked. "How'd the Nighlock get to you? I thought no words could touch you."

"I don't want to talk about it," was all Jayden _**(solemnly)**_ said on the subject.

Emily's smile wavered. So it was a sensitive subject after all.

 _ **'You're a red-faced, liar, liar, pants on fire! Can the girl behind you really trust you with that secret you're hiding from her?'**_

There really was something that could strike at Jayden deep within his heart. And it was a secret that he was hiding from _her_? Or to the entire team in general?

Jayden was saved, however, when a little bell sounded in the distance.

Mia gasped happily. "I know that sound! Ice cream trucks were my favorite things in the world when I was a kid!"

"Sounds better than the Gap Sensor, that's for sure!" Mike exclaimed, agreeing with Mia.

Emily chose this time to _'wake up'_. When she opened her eyes, it was Mike giving her a piggy-back ride. "Did someone say ice cream?"

The others turned to her, and Mike chuckled before responding, "You awake now?"

Emily nodded, smiling widely, as Antonio raced toward the ice cream truck, to stop it, Kevin and Mia on his tail. "Come on, guys. Hurry up!" Antonio called.

"Can you set me down, Mike?"

"Sure thing," and Mike did so, before racing off to join the others.

Emily turned to the man beside her. "Jayden?" He turned to face her. "Tell me when _you_ 're ready. Okay?"

Jayden couldn't help but meet her smile, before he motioned his head toward the now stopped ice cream truck.

The two raced there together.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _ **Original Shinkenger Episode: Act 6**_

 _ **Original PRS Episode: Sticks and Stones**_

 **Note: So, you know what the Havoc Mode looks like, and their helmets are the Mega Mode helmets, just to be clear. I also had some inspiration from Ninninger (AKA: Power Rangers Ninja Steel), but I still made it so it was Samurai-based. And Emily's Havoc Mode rollcall, I'm imagining, is similar to Kyoryu/Dino Charge Pink's.**

A/N: Do review, please. **If you guys have any ideas you want me to consider adding, please PM me.** A preview for the next chapter:

 _ **Season 1, Episode 7:**_ _"Fish Out of Water"_

 _"One of the missing Zords has returned, and it's up to Kevin to retrieve it. But Kevin will need a lot more than Symbol Power to complete his mission."_


	7. 7: Fish Out of Water

A/N: I hereby present to you all my own version (yes, another one) of Power Rangers: Samurai. It does have a much darker theme to it than Saban's version (which I do not hate, as you can obviously tell by my other PR stories). There were some flaws, yes, and I'm still going to use some terms you are familiar with.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Power Rangers Samurai or Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. I just own most of the plot and the characters and things you don't recognize from the original version.

 _ **I AM SO SORRY THIS IS LATE!**_

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _"One of the missing Zords has returned, and it's up to Kevin to retrieve it. But Kevin will need a lot more than Symbol Power to complete his mission."_

 **Better Together**

 _ **Power Rangers: Samurai REDO**_

 **Season 1, Episode 7:** _Fish Out of Water_

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

 _ **May 14, 2014**_

Emily opened her eyes with a start. Drenched in cold sweat, eyes widened, and her skin pale, tears of frustration were running down her face.

These dreams about the house were getting out of control. She needed to find those answers, but she didn't want to go back to the house in the forest.

Not when the others would probably think she was crazy.

It was all just a dream. That's right. _**Nothing but her wild imagination.**_

She took a deep breath, slowly exhaling, before rising from her bed and ambling to her closet, where she got dressed in a yellow blouse and white Capri's, with yellow flats on her feet.

After brushing her blonde hair, Emily slowly strolled down the hallway to the meeting room _**(after discovering that the kitchen was empty, aside from Mia cooking something)**_. After stepping into the brighter light, coming from the meeting room, Emily saw Kevin weighing his breakfast cereal with exact precision, Mike taking a sip of orange juice, and Jayden setting the milk down on the table. It looked like the three guys had already gotten their breakfast. Mia was nowhere to be found.

As Emily walked into the room, she quietly announced her presence. "Good morning."

"Morning," Mike replied, and Kevin nodded at her in response.

As she leaned over the table to grab a glass of orange juice and a couple slices of toast, she heard Jayden softly ask her, "You okay, Emily?"

He sounded a little worried about her, as if he knew something was wrong.

 _ **But there was no way she could tell him.**_

So she put on a fake smile and said, "Yeah, I'm fine," as Antonio entered the room, ready to start the day.

Emily glanced over at Kevin as he grabbed a spoonful of granola and placed it into his cereal bowl _**(which was placed on top of scales of some kind)**_. Jayden raised an eyebrow, Mike looked at him with a smile like he knew something and wanted tease him, and Emily and Antonio both gave him the _'are-you-crazy'_ look.

It appeared the four were thinking the same thing, something Kevin was suddenly aware of. It was like he sensed their stares, and he looked up and around at them, confused as to why they were looking at him in such a way.

"What are you doing?" Mike asked. "Just eat already."

"There's a right way to do everything," Kevin replied as-a-matter-of-factly.

Emily rolled her eyes and Mike said, "Wow, you're so wound up, I'm surprised you can digest your food." Kevin rolled his eyes as Mike continued, "It's just cereal, man. Cereal is meant to be eaten, not weighed."

"Precision and discipline, Mike. That's who I am," Kevin simply replies. "Logic is the best way to look at the world."

"But then you miss the bigger picture," Antonio spoke up as he poured milk into a clean, empty glass. "There's nothing wrong with using your imagination from time to time."

"I never said there was," Kevin fought back. "But there's nothing with using logic either."

"Hey!" Jayden immediately spoke up, causing the other four in the room to jump at the sound of his yell. "Both of you, quit fighting. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Don't act like yours is the only one that matters."

"I'm sorry, Kevin," Antonio apologized, with complete honesty.

"I'm sorry, too, Antonio," Kevin did the same, with the same honesty. "It's just how I was raised. And it's never failed me."

"It's the same with me, with creativity," and it was then, they the two may have found a middle ground.

Mia made her entrance. "Hey guys! I came up with a new recipe." Jayden glanced up as Mia set the covered plate on the table. "Everyone likes peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, right? So what could be better than a PB and J omelet?" She uncovered the plate and Emily immediately stepped back a few paces.

It looked like a normal omelet, with peanut butter and jelly filling and jelly smeared all over the top, but that wasn't the problem.

"Sorry, Mia, but I'm allergic to peanuts," Emily truthfully revealed her reason for retreating.

"Oh," Mia said. "Sorry about that." She covered the plate back up, and Emily breathed a sigh of relief and uncovered her nose and mouth. As long as Mia's hands didn't touch her _**(at least, until she washed them)**_ , she was good.

"Darn. I'm stuffed," Mike said. "I just ate. Rain check?"

Mia smiled and turned to Kevin, who stammered around and ended up pouring his orange juice onto his cereal. "I'll try it later, okay?"

 _ **Well...so much for Kevin's perfect breakfast.**_

Emily rolled her eyes again, glancing at Jayden and Antonio, who smirking too. Either Kevin wasn't somebody who found rare and unique food combinations good, or he had a crush on Mia. Or both.

"Precision and discipline, huh?" Mike called him out, sarcastically.

"Everyone, I have excellent news," Jii came in. "The missing Swordfish Zord has been spotted at Limatore Beach."

" _The_ Swordfish Zord?" Mia asked, emphasizing on the 'the' on purpose.

"Yes, it went missing in action years ago," Jii replied with one of his famous, quick explanations. "If we don't capture it now, who knows when we'll get another chance?"

Jayden was about to speak when the Gap Sensor went off. He stood up and everyone dropped what was in their hands down on the table, as Jii said quietly, "Waterfront Parking Garage."

Jayden was silent for a minute, which meant he was quick-thinking. "Kevin, are you up for a solo mission?"

"Absolutely," Kevin replied, automatically.

"Go to Limatore Beach and get that Swordfish. The rest of us will handle the Nighlock."

Kevin nodded. "I won't let you down."

And the five Rangers went their separate ways.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Waterfront Parking Garage, Panorama City, California**

When the other four arrived at the scene, the first thing they saw was a business man lying on the ground, out cold. Mia and Emily rushed forward to help him.

"Hey, hey! Are you okay?" Mia asked, as the two girls knelt next to the man.

The man did not answer.

"He's got a fever," Emily noticed, placing her hand against the man's forehead. "And it's pretty high to be considered normal."

Jayden and Mike both sniffed the air. "Hey, what's that smell?" Jayden asked.

The Nighlock they were here for stumbled out in the open from behind some cars. "Hey, Rangers, what's up? I'm Yamiror."

"He stinks, too," Mike commented, covering his nose.

"Hey, now! That hurts!" Yamiror defended. "But that is true. I do have a certain air about me."

 _ **"Samuraizers!"**_ Jayden commanded, and the other three followed his lead.

 _ **"Go, Go, Samurai!"**_

Mike activated his Forest Spear with a simple spin of his black Power Disk and charged at Yamiror first. One strike after another, the Nighlock kept dodging the Spear.

"You seem tired," Yamiror taunted as he dodged another thrust of Mike's spear. "Wanna take a breather?"

"No, thanks, I'll pass," Mike replied, before Yamiror suddenly got dangerously close to him.

"Come on, I insist," the Nighlock said, before breathing out a nasty-looking, green fog right in Mike's face.

Mike stumbled backwards, waving his hand in front of his face, suggesting that the Nighlock's breath smelled awful. "Have you gargling garbage?" Mike asked, before suddenly, hoarsely coughing. He fell to his knees before de-morphing in a flash of _**(a more pleasant looking)**_ green.

Mike had his eyes shut tightly and his hands wrapped around his throat.

Mia and Emily both rushed toward him and kneeled nest to their fallen teammate.

"Mike! You are okay?" Emily asked, gently shaking him.

"It's just like that business man," Mia noted. "He can't move."

Jayden rushed forward to assess the damage done to Mike himself. After seeing one of his teammates in such a bad way, Jayden turned back to the Nighlock.

"Come on, _Stink Pot_!" Jayden rushed forward, exchanging multiple blows with Yamiror, before crashing into his side, knocking both of them down a couple of stories and causing the two to crash-land in some boxes.

 _ **Bad move, Jayden. Now you're sore.**_

The Red Ranger was slow upon standing after the fall. It turned out to be a fruitless venture as well, because Yamiror was already in his face when he finally did stand up all the way.

"How about a breather?" Yamiror asked, before breathing right in Jayden's face.

Jayden stumbled backwards, waving his hand in front of his face, the same as Mike. "Didn't you already make that joke?" He noted, before realizing that his legs felt like jelly. He hoarsely coughed a couple of times before tripping over and falling backward into some more boxes, de-morphing in a flash of red on the way.

Mia and Emily, both of whom were still morphed, leapt down and landing beside him. Mia immediately stood in front of him, protecting him, while Emily knelt beside him, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"You alright?" Emily asked him. Sadly, however, he couldn't find the strength to answer her. He was afraid if he opened his mouth for anything, he would throw up.

"You'll pay for this!" Mia held her sword up, ready to attack.

"Mia!" Emily called. "Try to buy some time!"

"On it!" Mia didn't know exactly what Emily was going to do, but she knew she had to buy as much time as possible. So she charged forward, swinging her sword, but never hitting the Nighlock. Mia grabbed his waist, before swinging her right foot over her head and making it hit his own head.

"Oww! That hurt!" Yamiror eclaimed before breathing in Mia's face, causing her to de-morph in a flash on pink and fall to the ground as well.

 _ **"Havoc Mode, Engage!"**_ Emily called out, and soon she was in front of Mia _**(morphed in her Havoc Mode)**_ and using the Spiral Earth Drill to _**(attempt to)**_ drill a hole in Yamiror's chest _**(her Drill being surrounded in a spiraling flurry of yellow energy)**_.

The Nighlock must have realized that the only way to save himself from Emily's Drill was make her inhale his toxic breath, because that's exactly what he did.

Jayden and Mia weakly watched as Emily de-morphed from Havoc Mode in _**(what seemed like)**_ an explosion of yellow, but surprisingly, she was still morphed.

Emily coughed, her hand to her chest, before unsheathing her sword and charging again.

"So annoying..." the Nighlock mumbled, clearly annoyed at the supposed _'shield'_ Emily had.

But she didn't get very far, because Yamiror breathed right in her face a second time.

This time, she fully de-morphed back to civilian form and she collapsed on the ground in front of the two Rangers that fell before her.

"This is boring!" Yamiror exclaimed. "You Rangers are so weak! See you later!"

Jayden weakly watched the Nighlock sneak back through a gap, before turning to his two other teammates. "Mia, Emily! Get up!"

Mia lifted her head, weakly replying, "I'm here..."

But there was no such response from Emily. It made sense, though, upon remembering that Emily would be the worst off, having taking two doses of that toxic breath.

"Emily!" Jayden called.

But that was the last thing Emily heard before she finally gave in to the darkness.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Limatore Beach, Panorama City, California**

The kanji for "bait" didn't work, neither did the kanjis for "fish" nor "catch".

It was hot out here, and Kevin was sweating up a storm. He reached up to wipe off the sweat from above his eyes.

But that hardly did the trick. He still felt bad _**(the physical 'bad')**_.

His legs felt weak, like jelly. He could barely stand up anymore, and his chest felt unnaturally heavy.

He barely registered dropping the fishing pole he made himself with his Symbol Power. He felt really out of it.

He felt himself falling forwards as his entire world went black.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

"Oh, what a nice surprise!" Octoroo was measuring the level of the River. "The River is rising!"

"So, what's today's brilliant scheme?" Dayu asked Xandred and Octoroo.

"Yamiror," Xandred replied. "The nastiest smelling Nighlock in the Netherworld."

"He was created about eighty years ago when lightning struck some toxic waste," Octoroo exclaimed. "So you can imagine why he smells the way he does."

"Ugh," Dayu muttered.

"His breath is so bad," Xandred explains, "it incapacitates humans when they inhale it. Not even my medicine can help them."

"Right, so when the Rangers get caught too," Dayu summarized, "they'll definitely stay down."

"Right, and that's when we take over the Living World," Octoroo finished. "But, you know, this Havoc Mode the Rangers are trying to achieve..." He sounded a little nervous. "I was reading up on it...It has the power to easily override any Nighlock's ability."

"But only one Ranger has managed to unlock it," Dayu pointed out. "Unless Action-Commander Negatron's final report was wrong..."

"No, it's correct," Octoroo said, solemnly. "I guess I'm just worried about what would happen if all five core Rangers were to achieve it."

"Don't worry about it," Xandred ordered.

"Yes, Sir," Octoroo obeyed, and then brought up another subject. "Umm...Master?"

"What is it?" Xandred demanded, taking a sip of his medicine.

"The other day, I looked through a gap...and I saw _him_..."

Dayu stopped strumming her Harmonium and Xandred glanced up from his medicine. "What?"

"Yes, Master. Ex-General Deker, the Cursed Warrior."

Dayu was silent, but Xandred fiercely ordered, "That name is not to be said on this ship. _Ever again._ Understood?"

"Yes, Sir..."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Limatore Beach, Panorama City, California**

When Kevin opened his eyes next, he was under a canopy, and Antonio was there, placing a wet, cold washcloth on his forehead, as well as listening to someone talk on the phone.

"Yeah, his fever's gone down–"

"A-Antonio?" His voice was weak.

"Hey, Kevin," Antonio replied with a gentle smile after lowering his phone to his chest. "You feeling better?"

"What happened?" Kevin asked, sitting up and trying to remember exactly that.

Antonio gently pushed Kevin back to a lying down position. "Lie still for a while. You passed out from heat exhaustion. You were lucky Ji told me to help you in any way I could. He had a feeling this would happen."

"Thank you," Kevin honestly replied. "I feel a lot better."

"You're welcome." Antonio then held up his phone _**(which Kevin noticed was a fancy touch screen phone)**_. "Ji's on the phone right now. He wants to talk to you."

"Put in on speaker," Kevin requested, feeling the urge to let Antonio listen in. _Just because Antonio wasn't a Ranger like them didn't mean he had to be kept in the dark._

Antonio did so, before speaking up, "Go ahead, Ji."

 _ **"Kevin, the other four Rangers are sick. You need to come back to the Shiba House right now!"**_ Ji spoke up from the other end.

"What about the Swordfish Zord?" Kevin asked.

 _ **"I'm afraid you'll have to leave and come back later..."**_

"Ji," Antonio quietly spoke up, "the Swordfish Zord's Symbol Power over Rain has healing properties, remember?"

 _ **"That's right!"**_ Ji quickly realized. _**"On second thought, Kevin, stay there and keep trying to capture the Swordfish Zord."**_

Kevin and Antonio suddenly heard an alarm in the background. It sounded a lot like the Gap Sensor. Feeling the Power within him awaken, Kevin immediately sat up.

 _ **"A Nighlock attack,"**_ Ji muttered. _**"This time at city square–! Jayden! What are you doing up?"**_

Kevin and Antonio glanced up at each other in worry. The other four were sick, weren't they? Ji was right. What was Jayden doing up?

 _ **"You heard the Gap Sensor. There's a Nighlock to fight,"**_ they heard Jayden weakly say.

 _ **"You can't defeat a Nighlock in your condition,"**_ Ji argued.

 _ **"Maybe not, but I can slow him down."**_

 _ **"Just wait until Kevin comes back with the Swordfish Zord!"**_ Ji urged.

 _ **"The Nighlock don't wait, Ji!"**_

 _ **"Kevin–!"**_ Ji turned back to Kevin, before Ji cut off and was replaced by Jayden.

 _ **"Kevin, Mentor's exaggerating,"**_ Jayden calmly spoke. He must have snatched the phone out of Ji's hands. _**"Don't worry about us. Just focus on getting the Swordfish Zord, okay?"**_

Kevin was caught off-guard by how calm Jayden sounded. "O-Okay...but-"

 _ **"I didn't choose you randomly, Kevin,"**_ his leader cut him off. _**"You're extremely disciplined and orderly, and your commitment to this team is fierce. I know you can do anything you set your mind to."**_

There was that soft and sensible side, the one that agreed with Emily about all five of them becoming more of a team if they all knew each other personally, the one that made the others realize that their flaws made them a more connected team.

 _Jayden truly did deserve to be their leader._

"T-Thank you, Jayden. I'll be there as soon as I can," he promised.

 _ **"I know you will,"**_ Jayden replied before turning back to Ji. _**"I'll take care of the Nighlock."**_

Ji paused for a while before talking back into the phone. _**"Kevin, please hurry."**_

"I will," Kevin repeated before he motioned Antonio to hang up.

After Antonio did so, he followed Kevin in standing up.

"Kev?" He asked. "You okay?"

"Yeah, fine," Kevin replied, his voice thick with emotion. "Let's go. We have a Swordfish to catch."

Kevin was crying and trying to hide it. That was the only thing Antonio was sure of.

What Kevin was crying about, whether it was about Jayden and the others being sick, or Jayden having the utmost faith in him, or both, Antonio wasn't entirely sure.

Nonetheless, Antonio gently smiled and followed Kevin back out to the beach.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square Parking Garage, Panorama City, California**

A mother shielded her young daughter from the monster breathing on people and making them sick. The woman was hoping the monster wouldn't see them and would just walk away.

"Hi there~"

Boy, she had never been more wrong in her entire life.

The mom hugged her little girl even tighter as the monster breathed his green breath on them.

But it never hit them.

Both mother and daughter glanced up to see the Red Samurai Ranger, morphed, waving the toxic, green breath away from his face, as he couldn't help but cough.

"Hide somewhere," he told the two, before turning back to the monster.

Yamiror watched the two civilians run away from the scene before he turned back to the Red Ranger, who had unsheathed his Spin Sword and was slinging it over his shoulder.

"Aww...you're no fun," he pouted.

"Enough playing around, Nighlock!" Jayden's voice was stern now, a heavy difference from how gently he pep-talked Kevin earlier. "Three of my friends are sick because of you!"

"Oh, really. And you think you can stop me by yourself?" Yamiror taunted. "I hate to break it to you, but if you think that two whiffs of my toxic breath is more than enough, just wait. Three strikes, Ranger, and you're out."

Jayden didn't speak another word. He only charged forward.

The two clashed swords, quite expertly, despite how sloppy and slow Jayden's moves and reactions were, mainly because he was sick.

But he was also struggling, again, because he was sick.

Yamiror suddenly blasted energy shots from his eyes and in a flash of red, Jayden was once again de-morphed and had collapsed on the ground.

"See?" Yamiror taunted. "I told you! You can't defeat me if you're sick. Right now, I'm unstoppable!"

But Jayden's mind went to Mike and his _cheerful, jokester personality that always made you want to smile with him_.

To Mia and her _motherly attitude that always made you feel loved and well taken care of, whether you knew her or not_.

To Kevin and his _logical way of thinking that always made sure you lived life in the safest way possible_.

To Antonio and his _energetic way of living that always made you feel less depressed and definitely less alone_.

To Emily and her _empathic way of feeling that always made you feel like you were worth something_.

To Ji and his _fatherly way of discipline that always made sure you learned your lesson while being cared for at the same time_.

Yamiror found himself being the one that stumbled backwards this time upon noticed the fire in Jayden's blue eyes. The Nighlock found himself powerless to stop the Red Ranger from grabbing his Spin Sword and standing back on his feet.

Never again would Jayden fall, not when his team, his friends, counted on him to get right back up again.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Limatore Beach, Panorama City, California**

Antonio knelt beside Kevin when the said Ranger collapsed on his knees from exhaustion, again.

"Take it easy, Kevin," Antonio calmly said, handing Kevin an iced water bottle. "Don't make yourself sick."

"I can't rest," Kevin countered, after taking a big swig of water. "The whole world is counting on me."

"I know." Antonio was thoroughly calm, which a side of Kevin deeply appreciated _**(Antonio getting anxious too would not help anything)**_. "And I also know what that feels like. Sometimes, the fate of the world will ride of me, say, perfecting a new Megazord configuration. It happens to even the best of us."

Kevin was quiet for a minute, and when he finally spoke, Antonio immediately knew why, "They're counting on me..."

 _ **The other Rangers...**_

"I know," Antonio repeated. "You're not the only one who wants to save them, but you are the only one who can. But that's still no excuse to make yourself sick." Antonio paused for a moment. "You know, my grandpa was a fisherman, and he taught me the ropes when I was little. I can give you some pointers. Come on. Let's get that Swordfish."

Kevin smiled as Antonio helped him back on his feet.

"Drink some more water, Kevin," Antonio urged. "You need to stay hydrated. Especially if you're going to go fight a Nighlock after this."

Kevin swiftly obeyed, thoroughly trusting Antonio, before being handed his fishing pole.

"And patience is also important, okay? So take deep, calming breaths, and relax."

"Got it, but what about the bait?" Kevin asked, after doing so. He had come to the conclusion that it was the bait he was using that prevented him from luring the Swordfish to the Disk.

Antonio thought for a moment, "Well, it really depends on the fish you're trying to catch and what it's attracted to."

"It's a Swordfish," Kevin reasoned out. "But it's also a Zord."

"A Zord that probably saw its previous master get brutally defeated right before its eyes, causing it to run away, don't forget," Antonio added.

" _'Home'_ ," Kevin suddenly said, realizing exactly what he was doing wrong.

He wasn't using the incorrect wording. He was using the wrong type of bait altogether.

"What?"

"I've been going at this all wrong..." Kevin flipped his Samuraizer out and wrote out the kanji for _'home'_. After activating the kanji, he embedded itself onto the slip of paper Kevin had attached to the hook of his pole. "If the Swordfish Zord ran away, Antonio–"

Kevin didn't have to continue. "–then _'Home'_ will lure it back. Nice thinking."

"Thank you," Kevin got quiet, "but, it's not my thinking. It's yours."

Antonio didn't say anything. He was only surprised for a minute, before he gently smiled at Kevin before letting the Blue Ranger through the hook back into the sea.

After a few seconds, Kevin felt a harsh tug on the hook. After a short struggle, with Antonio's help, Kevin was able to pull the Swordfish Zord out of the sea and his Symbol Power, his bait called _'Home'_ , took care of sealing the Swordfish Zord inside the Power Disk _**(with the kanji for 'catch' on it)**_. Both Kevin and Antonio watched the white Disk turn an aqua color.

 _ **"Thank you, Blue Ranger,"**_ Kevin heard the Swordfish Zord say to him.

"Antonio, it's in the Disk!" Kevin exclaimed.

"You did it!"

"No, we did. Together."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square, Panorama City, California**

With a swift kick to his already aching chest, Jayden was knocked back on the ground, his Sword landing beside with a clang.

"Bye-bye, Ranger!" Yamiror lifted his sword for the finishing blow.

Jayden narrowed his eyes, waiting for Yamiror's sword to hit him.

 _It never did._

Mike sent a flying kick to Yamiror's own chest, knocking the Nighlock a few feet away, flat on his back.

Jayden began to sit up, as Mike knelt on the ground in front of him, holding his own stomach in pain. Mia was standing over Mike, in her own world of pain, yet trying to help the Green Ranger stand. Emily was on her knees beside Jayden, supporting him from behind.

"You shouldn't be here!" Jayden called. "You're sick!"

"Oh, yeah?!" Mike called back. "And you're as fit as a fiddle?! We can't let you have all the fun!"

"We can't just sleep at a time like this. The fate of the world comes before our health," Mia added, more gently than Mike.

"You guys..." Jayden muttered, taking a quick glance at Emily, who softly smiled at him.

"Besides, we're a team," Emily's voice was calm and gentle, and it immediately made Jayden less focused on the fact that he was sick. Yet, her eyes were burning with determination. "We do work _better together_ , after all. Right?"

Jayden softly returned her smile, "Yeah."

As Emily helped Jayden stand up, Mia and Mike turned back to Yamiror, who was getting back up.

"You're an idiot, Nighlock," Mike sternly said. "If you really think that making us sick would keep us from fighting against you and your kind, you're dead wrong!"

"We will never abandon each other," Mia added, just as angry as Mike. "You Nighlock should know that by now."

With Jayden's arm slung over her shoulders and him leaning heavily against her, Emily continued with, "We will find a way to defeat you. We will not stop until every single Nighlock is defeated!"

Yamiror sighed in anger. "I guess we don't see eye to eye, after all!" And he shot a few blasts from his eyes.

"Watch out!" Jayden called, as he and Emily moved to cover each other, Mike and Mia doing the same thing.

The four braced themselves for multiple hits, and more pain, but they never came.

Jayden caught sight of a blue folding dragon heading towards his left, and the four Rangers turned to the source.

"Kevin," Jayden breathed, letting a smile slip.

Kevin gently smiled at them, not saying anything, but holding up the aqua Swordfish Disk.

"W-What?" Yamiror was confused. Why did the Blue Ranger not show up until now? And why was holding an aqua Power Disk?

Kevin wordlessly hooked up the Swordfish Disk up to his Hydro Bow, aimed, and fired an arrow into the air.

Rain came down upon the city, and Yamiror immediately cowered in fright. "No! Not _**Purifying Rain**_! Now my stink power is gone!"

The Purifying Rain, however, held a different outcome when it hit the Rangers.

Emily no longer felt the urge to through up or collapse right there in exhaustion or cough her lungs, and she could tell that the other three Rangers were experiencing the same sensation. She turned to Kevin with a smile, but paused upon noticing that Kevin was surrounded by a blue aura.

Jayden stood back on his own two feet, no longer feeling the need to be supported by Emily. "Let's show this Nighlock the true meaning of teamwork," he said, and it was an order the others were all too happy to obey.

"Kevin," Emily called, "I think you–"

"–unlocked Havoc Mode," he finished, also noticing the blue aura surrounding him.

Kevin stood in the middle of the line-up _**(Mia, Mike, Kevin, Jayden, Emily)**_.

 _ **"Samuraizers! Go, Go, Samurai!"**_

 _ **"Havoc Mode, Engage!"**_ Kevin called, as the five all morphed.

Kevin's helmet was different _**(the kanji on it was more pronounced and it had a mouth piece, like Emily's had been previously)**_. He was also wearing a black sash with the Ranger emblem on it _**(that hung from his left shoulder all the way down to his right waist, and was tucked into his belt)**_ , had dark blue fishnet sleeves, no black stripes around his armbands _**(which were now completely blue)**_ , and his belt buckle had been replaced with the Dragon Zord in Defense Mode. His boots were the same, but his gloves were now black.

 _ **"Samurai Fire, Power Ranger Red!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Water, Havoc Mode Blue!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Wind, Power Ranger Pink!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Forest, Power Ranger Green!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Earth, Power Ranger Yellow!"**_

 _ **"Rangers Together-"**_ Kevin began.

 _ **"Samurai Forever!"**_ They all finished together.

No one noticed a white-colored Nighlock with red eyes, arriving to watch the fight.

The four Rangers, who had been sick, charged at Yamiror and each landed a strike. Kevin followed up with his Havoc Mode Weapon.

 _ **"Diamond Wave Trident!"**_

With his new weapon, Kevin managed to disarm Yamiror, as well as injure him a bit. Kevin stepped back for a breather.

"Man, this jerk really needs a bath!" Kevin exclaimed, before powering up his Trident. _**"Riptide Strike!"**_

A large wave of cold hit Yamiror, and the Nighlock began to shiver. "Brrrrr! That's cold!"

Jayden spun his black Power Disk. _**"Fire Smasher!"**_

Kevin came bounding up beside him. "Use this," he suggested, holding up the Swordfish Disk.

"Do it," Jayden said, before letting Kevin hook up the Disk. _**"Fire Smasher: Cannon Blast Mode!"**_ He turned to his team. "Lock and load." One by one, all five colored Power Disks were locked into the Cannon. _**"Five-Disk Swordfish Cannon!"**_ The other three Rangers knelt, while Jayden and Kevin took the final strike together. _**"Fire Strike!"**_

And with an explosion, Yamiror's first life was over.

But he quickly came back in a cloud of fire. "Big mistake, Rangers!"

Kevin unhooked the Dragon Zord from his belt. "Let's go!"

 _ **"Samuraizers!"**_

 _ **"Lion Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Dragon Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Turtle Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Bear Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ape Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ready! Zords Combine! Samurai Megazord, We Are United!"**_

The Rangers stood in the formation they were in when they morphed a while ago _**(Kevin in the middle)**_ , and Kevin had regained his Spin Sword _**(again, because he needed his Sword to control the Megazord)**_.

"I've got bad news for you Rangers," Yamiror said. "The bigger I am, the badder the stench!" And he blew some fog at them, surrounding the Megazord in it, including the cockpit.

Emily waved her hand in front of her face, trying to get some visibility. "I can't see anything."

"Well, great!" Mike said, sarcastically. "We're sitting ducks."

Yamiror used this to his advantage as he struck the Megazord in the shoulder. Fortunately, the Rangers blocked a second strike with their sword and a third strike with their shield, making them drop it.

"Any ideas?" Emily asked.

"The Swordfish Zord," Kevin immediately suggested. "I bet it can cancel out the fog. Don't worry. I've got this."

He took off the Blue Dragon Disk from the hilt of his Sword _**(which he hooked onto his stand)**_ , and then hooked up the Swordfish Disk in its place.

 _ **"Summon Swordfish Zord!"**_ Kevin called, spinning the aqua-colored Power Disk on his Sword's hilt. After the Swordfish arrived, Kevin called out the first attack, _**"Swordfish Torpedoes!"**_

Yamiror complained about hating fish as two torpedoes hit him square in the chest, before the Swordfish Zord's pointed nose did the same thing soon after, right in his behind.

"Hey, cut that out!"

 _ **"Samurai Artillery!"**_ Kevin called, the other four ready. The Swordfish Zord shifted its parts in order for it to fit onto the Megazord. "Time to air things out, Dragon Breath!"

 _ **"Swordfish Fencer Megazord, Armed for Battle!"**_ All five called out.

 _ **"Katana Power: Twin Blade Mode,"**_ Jayden called, as their sword received an extra blade.

Yamiror was struck with one blade and then the other, before being hit with four more torpedoes, making him drop his sword.

"One final strike should finish the job," Kevin said.

The Megazord threw its sword up in the air, before catching it with the Swordfish hat the Megazord was wearing, blade pointed up in the air. The Megazord began rotate its body around in a circle, gathering up energy for one final strike.

 _ **"Katana Power: Swordfish Slash!"**_

The Rangers spun the Disks on the hilts of their Swords, the Swordfish Disk hooked up to Kevin's, and a downwards slash made the Megazord do the same, unleashing all the energy gathered to strike down Yamiror once and for all.

 _ **"Samurai Rangers, Victory is Ours!"**_ Jayden announced.

"Welcome home, Swordfish Zord," Kevin softly said.

No one noticed the white Nighlock with red eyes leave. "Impressive..." he muttered.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Limatore Beach, Panorama City, California**

Kevin had taken the other five _**(Antonio included)**_ back to Limatore Beach. Now that he wasn't here on official Ranger business, he could focus on the gorgeous view. But, he didn't expect it to happen.

It had started out by Emily whispering an idea in Mia's ear.

"Ahh, the sweet smell of victory," Mike commented, enjoying the gentle, beach breeze.

And the Green Ranger was caught off-guard by Mia and Emily pulling towards the water, where the three proceeded to begin the water fight Antonio was all too happy to join.

Kevin and Jayden both stood on the shore, away from the water being splashed around.

"Good job, Kevin," Jayden gently told the other Ranger. "You did great."

"I couldn't have done without Antonio's help, and yours," Kevin honestly replied. "Antonio gave very useful tips, and you gave me the motivation I needed."

"That's what teammates do for each other," Jayden replied.

"Actually, that's what friends do for each other," Antonio had cut in, his feet and jeans up to his knees soaked with water. He had come towards the two in order to get them to join the water fight. "Not just teammates."

"True," Kevin said, before Mia called out to them.

"Hey! We should come here on our next day off!" She suggested.

"As long you bring sunscreen and plenty of towels!" Kevin said, before running towards the other three and getting all of them with a pretty big wave.

Jayden and Antonio were quiet, before Jayden said, "You should have seen them, Antonio. They were willing to risk their lives to save the world." His voice was quiet, yet filled with such great pride for his team.

"Just like you," Antonio understood where Jayden was coming from. "Teams really do have a collective heart, and this one is no different. You're a great leader, Jayden. Now, will you please join us and stop being such a loner?"

Jayden shook his head, smiling at Antonio's smug question, before the two ran into the water, being the ones that started the free-for-all water fight that would have them all soaked to the bone by the time they got back to the Shiba House.

Jii would freak out and mumble left and right about _"pneumonia"_ and how it was _"so easy to catch"_ as he helped them get warm, but the six would all admit the same thing.

 _ **"It was worth it."**_

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _ **Original Shinkenger Episode: Act 7**_

 _ **Original PRS Episode: Fish Out of Water**_

 **Note: "Diamond" is another word for "ice", just to be clear. Kevin's Havoc Mode rollcall, I'm imagining, is similar to Kyoryu/Dino Charge Gold's.**

A/N: Do review, please. **If you guys have any ideas you want me to consider adding, please PM me.** A preview for the next chapter:

 _ **Season 1, Episode 8:**_ _"Unholy Matrimony"_

 _"Mia was willing to sacrifice herself if it meant saving the brides, but Dayu's more clever than she's given credit for. She's not a General for nothing, after all."_


	8. 8: Unholy Matrimony

A/N: I hereby present to you all my own version (yes, another one) of Power Rangers: Samurai. It does have a much darker theme to it than Saban's version (which I do not hate, as you can obviously tell by my other PR stories). There were some flaws, yes, and I'm still going to use some terms you are familiar with.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Power Rangers Samurai or Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. I just own most of the plot and the characters and things you don't recognize from the original version.

 _ **I AM SO SORRY THIS IS LATE!**_

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _"Mia was willing to sacrifice herself if it meant saving the brides, but Dayu's more clever than she's given credit for. She's not a General for nothing, after all."_

 **Better Together**

 _ **Power Rangers: Samurai REDO**_

 **Season 1, Episode 8:** _Unholy Matrimony_

 **Chapel Hill Church, Panorama City, California**

 _ **May 24, 2014**_

Emily felt really uncomfortable. She didn't know why, and that really bothered her.

Recenty, the city has been reporting a missing persons' case. At first, it had just been one or two, but then it grew into a whopping number of ten.

Ten people missing.

But not just any people. Brides. On their respective wedding days. And when the witnesses all stated that "fish-faced monsters" were the culprits, that was the cue for the Samurai Rangers to jump into action.

Logically _**(according to Kevin)**_ , the best way to find the missing brides was for one of the two girls _**(Mia or Emily)**_ to be kidnapped themselves, which meant they had to stage a wedding of their own.

And now, here they were.

Mia had volunteered to be the bride, and after Kevin and Mike backed out _**(from either nervousness or fear, or both)**_ , Jayden had taken up the faux mantle as her groom. And for some reason, Emily was not okay with that.

But, fortunately, she wasn't the only one. Mike obviously wasn't one for sappy romance stuff like a wedding, Kevin was crying and blaming it o the flowers he was wearing _**(allergies)**_ , and Antonio seemed a little too weirded out from Ji's fake crying.

Mia was determined to save those poor brides. If she was in their shoes, she'd be sad and angry at the same time _**(just like they probably were)**_.

As the preacher they hired continued the traditional speech about love, Mia glanced over at Jayden's stoic face. He glanced back at her, both obviously sharing the same thought.

 _ **'The Nighlock should have shown up by now.'**_

Then, as if on cue, Antonio's tablet _**(which was hooked up to the Gap Sensor)**_ began to go off. Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to Antonio before he looked up from the tablet and groaned, "Sunrise Cathedral."

Mike exhaled in frustration. "That's not even in the same _district_ as we are!"

"Come on!" Jayden swiftly ordered. "If we hurry, we can still save that bride!"

All dressed in their Sunday best, the other four followed Jayden out the door.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Sunrise Cathedral, Panorama City, California**

The five Rangers arrived at the Cathedral fully morphed and ready not fight, yet were suprised at how few Marauders had shown up _**(probably due to the fact that they didn't expect the Rangers to shown up)**_. Fortunately, they had arrived just as the Marauders were dragging the newly-targeted bride out the doors.

Jayden, Kevin, Mike, and Emily immediately charged forward to fight the enemy, yet Mia stayed behind. As the other four swung their Swords to combat the Marauders, Mia's own Sword remained sheathed at her side.

She's never wanted to save someone so much in her entire life. But there was no way to save this bride without saving the others right now. They needed to know where the place that these ladies were being held in, right away if possible.

That's when Mia got an idea, probably her best one yet.

She quickly ducked behind a wall and de-morphed, before stepping back out and letting her bride disguise completely fool the Marauders. Kevin had said early that the most logical way to find the Nighlock base was for one of them to get captured and then relay the location back to the others. So, Mia was going with that idea.

Mia barely managed to hide her gloating smile as the Marauders quickly grabbed her by the arms and pulled her away from the scene. It took Mia all of her willpower not to fight back _**(her fighting instincts always got high whenever she saw a Nighlock: foot soldier, Action Commander, or General).**_

But she was completely missed the fact that she was surrounded by a pink aura.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Forest Shrine, Outskirts, Panorama City, California**

When the Marauders finally came upon a shrine in the forest, Mia got ready to fight, ready to free the brides. She didn't care about praise from her teammates. She just wanted to save those brides.

Mia was caught off-guard when she was forced on her knees. Her brown eyes glanced up in time to see the real bride _**(the one she had followed)**_ being shoved into what looked like a giant cake. She also saw giant rainbow-colored threads coming from the cake, connecting it to a wedding dress on a stand up against the northern wall.

Mia continued to survey her surroundings _**(despite being confused about why she wasn't in the giant cake with the other brides)**_. Marauders stood guard at every waypoint, making it impossible for anyone to escape.

"Hello, Pink Ranger," said a female voice. Mia softly gasped when she got a good look at the face of the Nighlock who just spoke.

 _'Dayu? The first and only female General under Master Xandred?'_ Mia recalled what she read in the archives once. _'She's in the archives! But how does she know it's me?'_

"Did you really think my Marauders were stupid?" Dayu continued, sounding as if the answer to Mia's unspoken question was super obvious. "No wedding has two brides and one groom! Besides, they saw you un-morph, sweetie. Every Nighlock here knows you're the Pink Ranger!" Mia watched a Marauder hand Dayu the Pink Samuraizer and the Turtle Folding Zord.

That's why Mia was shoved into the giant cake with the real bride. Dayu and the Marauders knew it was Mia the entire time, and now Dayu was going to use Mia to destroy the other Samurai Rangers.

"What are you planning, Dayu?" Might as well get some answers while she waited for the others to realize she was gone.

"Ah, I see you already know me," the female General replied, clutching her Harmonium in her hand as if was the only thing keeping her alive. "That saves me the exhausting task of having to introduce myself, Pink Samurai of the Wind. You see this dress right here?" Dayu motioned to the dress against the northern wall. "This is my own wedding dress, being sewn by the tears of the brides who had the special day ripped from underneath them! And once it's complete, Pink Ranger, I'll wear it and use it to make every male in the city fall in love with me!"

Mia's eyes slowly glanced down. Dayu sounded as if her own wedding day was ruined, so she was taking it out on humanity itself.

"But your Ranger friends will be a challenge," Mia snapped out of her reverie when Dayu continued to speak. "Their powers give them special protection, especially if they've already unlocked that so called Havoc Mode of yours."

 _Kevin and Emily_...they were sure to be targeted because of their own Havoc Modes. Mia's mind wandered to when Emily activated her Havoc Mode against Yamiror. That Nighlock had to get Emily twice before she went down. So Dayu's words just now, about Havoc Mode acting as an extra barrier, must be true.

"Aha!" Dayu grabbed Mia's chin and pulled it up so that Dayu and Mia were looking into each other's eyes. "I have an idea, Pink Ranger, and I'll need your help."

Mia's stomach churned in worry and dread. What did Dayu have up her sleeve now?

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

Kevin was pacing in utter worry. "Anything yet?" He stopped and asked Antonio for the umpteenth time in the past hour.

The tech-wizard was using his laptop to try and track Mia down.

"Not yet." Once again, Antonio's voice was calm, which was a good thing. "But once I do have something, you'll be the first to know. Trust me."

Mike was sitting, bouncing his leg in anticipation. Jayden was also sitting, around the same table as Mike, glancing at a list of some kind on a clipboard, looking as if he was in deep thought. Emily was standing next to Jayden, trying to think of a way to help, in any way possible.

"Do you think they took Mia to the Sanzu River?" She asked, wanting to help by narrowing down the placed that Mia wouldn't be at.

"No," Ji quickly replied, a book in his hand. "The living can't survive there for long. The moment they touch the Sanzu River water, they would be poisoned and die, unless treated right away. That goes for you Rangers, as well. Your powers would act as a barrier, but a weak one."

"You know, I've been thinking," Jayden spoke up.

"Oh yeah? What about?" Mike asked him.

"About why our fake wedding didn't work," their leader replied, completely stoic. He held up the clipboard he was looking at. "This is a list of all the wedding scheduled in the city for today."

The other residents of the house leaned in to get a closer to look. Emily pointed out the first thing she noticed about the list.

"There are so many weddings," she said. The list was about two, almost three, pages long. "That's the problem."

"Yeah," Kevin agreed, before reasoning out, "No wonder our wedding didn't get any attention. The Nighlock already have a lengthy list to choose from."

"Right," Jayden continued. "So, if we can narrow their so-called _'list'_ , there might be a stronger chance that they'll pick our wedding and fall for our trap more easily."

There was a beat of silence before Mike interrupted it.

"You're planning something, aren't you?" The Green Samurai asked.

"I am," Jayden was completely honest. "And I'll need Emily's help in making it work."

Emily suddenly became questionably nervous. "M-Me?" Jayden only nodded. "O-Okay. I'll do my best, Jayden. Whatever you need me for."

"I know, Em." Emily's heart skipped a beat when he called her that. "I have faith in you." This brought a smile to her face.

"Found Mia!" Antonio called out. Kevin immediately turned to him.

"You did?"

"Yep," Antonio replied, before explaining. "She must have crossed an evil barrier or something, because her Samuraizer is not working. That's why I had trouble earlier. So I decided to switch to her Turtle Folding Zord, which, as you guys already know, is a sentient being, so the Zords will never run out of power–"

"Antonio!" The Latino paused in his techno-babble when Jayden interrupted him, before remembering that not everyone could understand what Antonio was talking about. Jayden nodded, wanting him to get to the point.

"Right, sorry," Antonio replied. "Long story short, I know where she is, and she's okay. At least, for now."

Jayden's Samuraizer suddenly received a call. He immediately picked up. Every single Ranger and Ranger ally was within eyesight of him, so it had to be Mia.

"Hello?"

"Jayden?" He was right.

"Mia!" The other Rangers immediately crowded around him. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," he heard her say. "I'm with the missing brides. Pier 32, at the Waterfront."

"Got it," Jayden replied, still keeping his cool despite the current situation.

"And Jayden?" She stopped him from hanging up.

"Yes?"

"Please, hurry," her voice sounded urgent, yet full of quilt, and it made Jayden wonder why.

"We're on it, Mia," Jayden replied before hanging up. He slowly turned to Antonio. "Antonio?"

"Yes, buddy?" The energetic Latino questioned.

"Is Mia at the Waterfront?"

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Pier 32, Waterfront, Panorama City, California**

The Marauders surrounding the warehouse on Pier 32 watched as the four remaining Rangers, full morphed wordlessly rushed inside.

Once the four were completely inside, the Marauders shut the front doors, the only way out.

The one Marauder in charge pressed the button on the remote, to activate the dynamite inside.

Seconds later, the entire warehouse exploded, engulfed in flames. After making there was nothing left of that warehouse, the Marauders surrounding the rubble moaned in victory.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Forest Shrine, Outskirts, Panorama City, California**

Mia watched the screen in utter horror, trembling at what she had done.

She had given the others the wrong coordinates _**(against her will, mind you)**_ , and they had just paid the price for her stupidity.

It should have been her that had just died in that explosion, not the other Rangers. It was her mistake, and she along should have paid the price.

All five of Mia's senses went completely numb. She could barely hear Dayu laughing in evil victory.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

 _ **'Is Mia at the Waterfront?'**_ Jayden had asked.

 _ **'No, not even close,'**_ Antonio replied, solemnly. _**'She's on the opposite side of the city, in a forest on the outskirts of town.'**_

 _ **'She lied,'**_ Jayden revealed. _**'Mia said she was at Pier 32.'**_

 _ **'Maybe she was forced to give us the wrong coordinates,'**_ Emily suggested. _**'Against her will. There's no way Mia would betray us.'**_

 _ **'Emily's right,'**_ Kevin agreed, just as quickly as Emily did.

 _ **'I'm not saying she's a traitor,'**_ Jayden defended his stance. _**'I'm only suggesting that Mia could be in more trouble than we thought.'**_

 _ **'Then we have to hurry,'**_ Emily pointed out.

 _ **'But we can't just barge straight into a trap,'**_ Mike brought up a really good point. _**'We need a plan.'**_

 _ **'We've got one,'**_ Kevin said, referring to the plan Jayden had just shared with the group. _**'We just need a way to avoid that trap waiting for us at Pier 32.'**_

 _ **'Dopplegangers!'**_ Mike suggested.

 _ **'Good idea, Mike,'**_ Kevin replied.

 _ **'Let's do it,'**_ Jayden ordered, getting out his Samuraizer, the other three Rangers following his example.

 **'Symbol Power: Doubles!'**

And now, here they were. Ji had just gotten back front being on the phone for about half an hour.

"Phase 1 of Jayden's plan has been completed," Ji revealed. "I notified all of the weddings, aside from one, about the bride kidnappings and all of then being potential targets."

"That way with only one wedding scheduled," Jayden further explained, "we know exactly which one the Nighlock will hit. Phase Two is the part where I need you, Emily." Emily nodded in understanding. "We're going undercover."

As the groom and bride, respectively, Emily realized. She didn't know why she was so nervous and shaken up. She's worn disguises before, usually to hide from bullies, and about once or twice to help her dad catch some criminals. She shouldn't be nervous like this. And she didn't know why.

But she would suck it up, for the sake of humanity. The safety of the city came before her feelings.

"R-Right."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

Octoroo was watching Dayu's progress through the head of his staff.

"Dayu's taking all those ladies on one sad ride, but to me, that dress says she hasn't let go of the past, after all," he said.

"Dayu's soul is in pain, just like my head," Xandred added. "I need more medicine," he said as he drank some medicine from his plate.

"I admit that her idea is pretty genius," Octoroo stated aloud, "but I think she's still unhealthily clinging onto the past."

"As long as Dayu helps me flood the river," Xandred said, "she can do whatever she wants."

"You're too...should I say it...soft on Dayu, Master," Octoroo replied. Xandred merely groaned. "I know you said we wouldn't talk about Deker anymore, Master, but we really should. I'm constantly monitering him through the gaps, and he keeps saying that he's found a way to break his curse..."

"Deker is strong," Xandred said. "That's how he made General of the Nighlock army, but after we found out he was half-human, I kicked him out. Hmm...maybe we can use Deker to our advantage, after all..."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Diamond Hall, Diamond Hall Park, Panorama City, California**

Elizabeth Campbell looked in the mirror, fixing her wavy, blonde hair before she would get ready to walk down the garden aisle. Her bridesmaids had already left to take their places at the outdoor altar. She was just waiting for her grandfather _**(in place of her deceased father)**_ to come and get her.

There was a knock on the door. Elizabeth immediately turned to the door, a big smile on her face.

"Grandpa!" But her smile faded as the door opened, revealing who was really on the other side. "Who are you?"

Emily Shields quietly held up her Ape Folding Zord, to which Elizabeth gasped, her smile returning.

"Y-Yellow Ranger!"

"Shhh!" Emily silenced the bride by a putting her index finger to her mouth. "Please, keep it a secret." Elizabeth nodded, fully intending to keep that promise. "Listen, the Nighlock are targeting you. If you go out there, you will be captured. In order to prevent this from happening, I need to take your place, so they take me instead."

"A-Are you sure?" Elizabeth asked. "I don't really like the idea of you getting hurt to save me..."

"I'm a Power Ranger," was Emily's gently reply. "That's one of the risks we take. Trust me, I'll be fine."

Elizabeth hesitated. "O...O-Okay. I assume you Rangers must have a plan."

Emily made a good point, "We wouldn't be doing this if we didn't."

"True...I have an extra dress in the closet over there, in case this one got ruined in any way," Elizabeth revealed. "It's an exact replica. We seem about the same size, so it should fit you."

"Alright," Emily said, before her own smile faded. "Listen, I'm sorry this is happened to you. And I'm really sorry we're the cause of it."

"It's alright," Elizabeth gently answered, pulling the extra dress out of the closet. "Just promise me this plan of yours will work, that you'll rescue those brides so that they get enjoy the happiest day of their lives without any interference."

"I promise."

Mike exited the room they had placed the groom in. Kevin was standing guard outside, waiting for Mike.

"Okay, the groom knows what's going on," Mike revealed to Kevin. "I had to make him promise not to tell anyone we were Rangers, though."

"Same with the crowd," Kevin said. "But they know what's going on, too, so they won't be surprised if their relatives aren't the ones who walk down the aisle."

"Good," Jayden's sudden appearance, dressed in a black tuxedo, surprised them. "I just hung up with Antonio. He's got a solid lock on Mia's location, and he's ready to track the Ape Zord."

"Great," Kevin clapped his hands once, pleased at how smoothly this was going. "We're ready to start. All we need is–"

"Emily..." Jayden breathed. Kevin and Mike turned around to see where Jayden's blue eyes had wandered off to.

There stood Emily, completely dressed up in the second dress Elizabeth had.

She looked... _amazing_.

"You look...really beautiful, Emily," Jayden complimented.

Her bashful blush only made her more adorable. "Thank you."

Kevin and Mike could swear that Jayden's face was red as well.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Diamond Hall Park, Panorama City, California**

Jayden walked down the aisle, with Emily holding onto his arm. The air was tense, despite it being quiet, aside from the music from the piano playing. Despite the fact that they covered inch and hid every hole in the plan, Jayden was still fairly nervous about whether or not this plan would actually succeed.

Would the Marauders recognize Emily as the Yellow Ranger and keep as prisoner, a weapon to use against the other Rangers, like they did with Mia?

 _Well, according to the Nighlock, all the Rangers aside from Mia were_ _ **dead**_ _from the explosion in that warehouse on Pier 32._

The two only made barely halfway down the aisle before the Marauders actually showed up. Jayden tensed up, ready to fight, as soon as the Marauders grabbed ahold of Emily by the arms.

His protective instincts had flared up, even though he knew Emily could handle herself, as well as the fact that Emily getting captured was part of the plan. Jayden didn't know why, but all he wanted in that moment was to get Emily to safety, a feeling he only got when Antonio or Ji were on the battlefield with him.

Then again, he felt that he shared a special connection with Emily. They were so alike: how they both liked hot chai tea and a cinnamon roll for breakfast, how they both like peace and quiet and less-crowded areas, and especially how they both cared for people so much, they'd die for them.

 _He especially liked how nice and understanding she was._

He worried about her, though. When they first met in that forest, she seemed really freaked out by something, something he couldn't see. Either she was mentally insane in some way or she was a special target for an unknown enemy. He was worried about that, especially since every time he or someone else brought it up, she didn't want to talk about it.

Emily nodded at him, and Jayden nodded back, feeling willing enough to let her go.

He was rather reluctant to let her leave his sight, but he sucked it up.

The safety of the city came before his feelings, and Emily knew that very well.

Kevin and Mike handled crowd control while the three guys waited for Antonio and Emily to get back with the information necessary to take down the head of this missing brides operation.

Jayden sighed in relief when his Samuraizer went off. He picked up right away.

"Emily?"

"Jayden? I found the brides," she sounded a little smug.

"And Mia?"

"Mia too."

Jayden calmly smiled. "Well done, Em."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Forest Shrine, Outskirts, Panorama City, California**

Dayu had been successful in kidnapping yet another bride. _**Twelve brides taken now...**_

And it was all Mia's fault. Maybe if she hadn't thought that letting herself get taken during the middle of the fight, the others would still be alive. And if they were still alive _**(all no thanks to her)**_ , they probably would have prevented that bride from getting kidnapping too, just like the others before.

"My dress is almost complete, Pink Ranger," Dayu said, but Mia still did not pay any attention to what she said. "And now that your teammates are gone, too, I don't need you anymore."

Dayu pulled a dagger concealed within her Harmonium. She raised it, ready to make Mia join her teammates.

"Say goodbye, Pink Ranger!"

But before Dayu could do anything, Mia's reverie was shattered by a minature Zord flying around, hitting and knocking out Dayu and the Marauders in a blaze of fire.

 _'The Lion Zord?'_

Mia held out her hands in time for the Lion Zord to drop off her Samuraizer and the Turtle Zord in them.

Dayu got back up just as three males entered the building.

"What?! Rangers?!"

Mia's head immediately snapped towards the entrance, where these three males were standing.

Jayden _**(in a tuxedo)**_ , Kevin, and Mike _**(with both he and Kevin in casual clothes)**_...

"Y-You guys...you're still alive..." Mia could feel tears in her eyes now, happy tears.

Kevin smiled at her, before going over to help her up. "You okay there, Mia?"

"I've never been better," she replied, her voice thick with emotion, before she threw her arms around Kevin's neck and gave him a tight hug.

"Good."

"That's impossible!" Dayu shrieked. "The warehouse...it blew up! I saw it happen! You should be dead!"

"Sorry," Mike said. "Guess you should have double checked to see if those Rangers were clones or not."

 _ **Clones...**_

Mia mentally slapped herself in the face. She would never forgive herself for doubting her team so much. Antonio would have found a way to see where Mia really was, so the team would never have been in danger in the first place!

"No! You Rangers are supposed to be dead!"

"I guess we were smarter," Kevin said.

"And by the way," Jayden calmly interrupted, "Mia's not the only Samurai Ranger that you kidnapped today."

Before Dayu or Mia could ask what he meant, giant slashes came from inside the giant cake. Once the cake was destroyed, there stood the twelfth bride with a Spin Sword in her hand. She then took off her veil, revealing to Mia and Dayu who she really was.

"Two Ranger brides are twice as nice, don't you think, Dayu?" Emily asked with a bubbly smile across her face.

"Emily!" Mia called out, her voice and face filled entirely with happiness.

"Hi, Mia," Emily replied. "We're all glad you're okay."

"Same here..." Mia muttered.

Emily turned to the real brides, the ones that had been captured, and told them, "Go on! Get out of here!"

On their way out, they knocked down Dayu's dress and trampled all over it, effectively ruining it.

"No! My dress!"

Emily joined the other four Rangers over by the door, as Mia said _**(with her willpower back**_ ), "Your dress-making days are over!"

"Oh yeah? We'll see about that!" Dayu blew a black aura ball from her mouth at them.

To avoid it, Jayden quickly pulled out his Samuraizer and teleported all five of them out of the shrine.

 _ **"Go, Go, Samurai!"**_

Those words were familiar. That was their morphing call!

"Quick! My Harmonium!" A Marauder nearby handed Dayu her Harmonium before the Marauders all followed her out the door.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Parkside Quarry, Outskirts, Panorama City, California**

Once Dayu got outside, she surveyed her surroundings. "You Rangers can't hide forever! Show yourselves!"

A twig cracked and Dayu immediately turned to face the source of that sound.

Jayden, fully morphed, came out from behind a tree. He unsheathed his Sword, saying, _**"Samurai Fire, Power Ranger Red!"**_

On Dayu's left, Kevin rolled out from behind another tree. He also unsheathed his Sword, saying, "Samurai Water, Power Ranger Blue!"

Dayu glanced up to see Mia standing in a tree, on a strong branch. Her Sword was already unsheathed. _**"Samurai Wind, Power Ranger Pink!"**_

To the left of Kevin, Mike stood up from his seat on the steps. He stretched before saying, _**"Samurai Forest, Power Ranger Green!"**_

Completing the circle was Emily, who was walking forward as she unsheathed her Sword as well. _**"Samurai Earth, Power Ranger Yellow!"**_

Mia jumped down from the tree as the five Rangers encircled Dayu, trapping her. "Dearly beloved, we're gathered here for one thing."

 _ **"Rangers Together, Samurai Forever!"**_

"I have but one thing to say," Dayu pretended to play along. "Marauders! Attack!"

Jayden, Mike, and Emily rushed forward to combat the Marauders, while Kevin and Mia went after a retreating Dayu, bu also ran into some Marauders.

Once Kevin and Mia finished their groups, a couple of blasts sent both flying to the ground. They immediately stood up once they saw that the one who had hit them was Dayu, standing on a cliff above them.

"Surprised to see me?" Dayu asked.

"I don't like surprises," Kevin replied. _**"Hydro Bow!"**_

He fired a few arrows at Dayu, and they seemed to hit her straight on, but she came out of the resulting explosion unfazed.

Dayu landed in front of them. "Ha! That's all you've got? You Rangers are even weaker than I thought. Now, lend me your ears for the last song you'll ever hear." She strummed her Harmonium.

"Not a chance!" Mia called out, before she and Kevin leapt up and struck and Dayu, who easily blocked their swords with her Harmonium.

It was like a dance. Despite being a Nighlock, Dayu was very graceful on her feet. And when she tripped Kevin, Mia stepped up to protect him. She wasn't successful for very long.

"Here's a tune with some edge!" Dayu said, before super-speeding up to them and striking at them with her dagger.

Kevin and Mia both fell to the ground, injured.

"We need something else," Kevin muttered, right before the Turtle Zord flew out of Mia's pocket and into her face.

 _ **"Master, you've unlocked Havoc Mode."**_

Mia was confused. "W-What?"

 _ **"I'm not joking, Master,"**_ Turtle said. _**"You received it earlier, when you were about to sacrifice yourself."**_

"Okay," Mia said. "I'll take your word for it."

 _ **"Ready whenever you are, Master!"**_

"What you Rangers up to now?" Dayu asked.

 _ **"Havoc Mode, Engage!"**_ A pink light surrounded Mia. When it faded, she was morphed in Havoc Mode.

Mia's helmet was different _**(the kanji on it was more pronounced and it had a mouth piece, like Emily and Kevin's had been previously)**_. She was also wearing a black sash with the Ranger emblem on it _**(that hung from her left shoulder all the way down to her right waist, and was tucked into her belt)**_ , had dark pink fishnet sleeves, no black stripes around her armbands _**(which were now completely pink)**_ , and her belt buckle had been replaced with the Turtle Zord in Defense Mode. Her boots were the same, but her gloves were now black and she had white-colored thigh-high stockings.

 _ **"Samurai Wind, Havoc Mode Pink!"**_

"Oh, really?" Dayu asked. "As if an outfit change can help you!"

 _ **"Windstorm Arrow!"**_ Mia pulled out a bow _**(very different from Kevin's Hydro Bow)**_. "Stay back, Kevin. I got this!" Kevin nodded, appreciating the fact that Mia wanted him to recover.

Mia aimed a kick at Dayu's head, who merely ducked, but Dayu wasn't prepared for Mia's kick at her torso. Dayu stumbled backward, holding her injured stomach. Mia charged with her Windstorm Arrow in her hand, hitting Dayu with it a few times before, pulling back the mechanism and charging up an arrow.

 _ **"Flower Hurricane!"**_ Mia fired the pink-colored arrow, which was surrounded by pink-colored wind and flower petals.

It hit Dayu square in the chest, and she fell backwards onto the gravel below her feet.

"Mia!" The said Ranger turned back to see Jayden standing with the Fire Smasher equipped, and standing beside him were Kevin, Mike, and Emily. Mia rushed over.

"Don't worry, Mia. We'll take it from here," Jayden replied, holding up the Beetle Disk.

And Mia nodded, grateful to still have a team to fight alongside her.

 _ **"Fire Smasher: Cannon Blast Mode!"**_ He turned to his team. "Lock and load." One by one, all five colored Power Disks were locked into the Cannon.

"This should change your tune," Mia said, once all the Disks were loaded.

 _ **"Five-Disk Beetle Cannon!"**_ The other four Rangers knelt, while Jayden took the final strike. _**"Fire Strike!"**_

But instead of Dayu's first life ending in an explosion like they expected, a white-colored Nighlock with red eyes landed in front of her and sliced the Cannon Blast in half with his sword.

Mike and Emily immediately stood up and unsheathed their Swords.

"Red Ranger, you shall be my sword Uramasa's greatest challenge," the white-colored Nighlock said.

"What?" Jayden muttered, obviously confused.

"Deker!" Dayu called out. "What are you doing here?"

"Red Ranger, we will duel soon," the stranger _**(apparently called Deker)**_ continued. "Until then." Then, he took Dayu by the arm and pulled her up to a cliff.

"So you're running away?" Kevin asked.

"Cowards!" Mia called after them.

"Giant Marauders!" was all Deker said before he and Dayu disappeared into a gap.

And cue the said enemies appearing from the same gap.

"Well then," Mia said, as the Rangers immediately went on the offensive. MIa unhooked Turtle Zord from her belt.

 _ **"Samuraizers!"**_

 _ **"Lion Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Dragon Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Turtle Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Bear Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ape Folding Zord!"**_

 _ **"Ready! Zords Combine! Samurai Megazord, We Are United!"**_

The Rangers stood in a formation they hadn't been in before _**(Mike, Jayden, Mia, Kevin, Emily)**_ , and Mia found that she had regained her Spin Sword _**(and the sheath, as she needed her Sword to control the Megazord)**_.

Jayden handed Mia the Beetle Disk. "Here."

"On it!" Mia said before hooking up the Beetle Disk to her hilt. _**"Summon Beetle Zord!"**_ She called out, spinning the orange-colored Power Disk on her Sword's hilt. _**"Samurai Artillery!"**_ Mia called, the other four ready. The Beetle Zord shifted its parts in order for it to fit onto the Megazord.

 _ **"Beetle Blaster Megazord, Armed for Battle!"**_ All five called out.

"Let's roll!" Mia ordered.

The Megazord rushed forward, striking down two Marauders with its sword. Then it turned to face the four behind it.

 _ **"Beetle Cannon!"**_ Mia called out. A direct hit on all four. "Bullseye!"

But then the remaining Marauders charged forward quickly and used their weapons to jam the controls.

"Come on!" Kevin said, trying to break free of the sabotage. "I can't break free!"

More Marauders leapt into the fray to trap the Rangers even more.

"What do we do now?" Mike asked, before the intercom came online, along with Antonio's voice.

 _ **"If you release the Beetle Zord, guys, the force should push those Marauders back and free you long enough to get your bearings,"**_ Antonio advised. _**"And then you can use the Swordfish Zord to gain the upper hand again."**_

"Good thinking, Antonio," Jayden said, as Mia unhooked the Beetle Zord from her hilt.

Antonio's idea worked, fortunately.

"Mia!" Kevin handed Mia the Swordfish Disk, which she hooked up to her Sword's hilt.

"I'm on it," she said, before spinning the aqua-colored Power Disk. _**"Summon Swordfish Zord!"**_ The Swordfish Zord arrived, making its entrance by firing two torpedoes at the Marauders surrounding the Megazord. _**"Samurai Artillery!"**_ Mia called, the other four ready for action. The Swordfish Zord shifted its parts in order for it to fit onto the Megazord.

 _ **"Swordfish Fencer Megazord, Armed for Battle!"**_ All five called out.

"One final strike should finish the job," Kevin suggested.

The Megazord threw its sword up in the air, before catching it with the Swordfish hat the Megazord was wearing, blade pointed up in the air. The Megazord began rotate its body around in a circle, gathering up energy for one final strike.

 _ **"Katana Power: Swordfish Slash!"**_

The Rangers spun the Disks on the hilts of their Swords, the Swordfish Disk hooked up to Mia's, and a downwards slash made the Megazord do the same, unleashing all the energy gathered to strike down the remaining Marauders once and for all.

 _ **"Samurai Rangers, Victory is Ours!"**_ Mia announced.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square, Panorama City, California**

After the battle was over, Emily had taken the liberty of calling Elizabeth to let her and the other people at her wedding know that the danger had passed. In return, Emily got to keep the spare wedding dress. She was rather reluctant to do so, but Elizabeth said she deserved a reward for doing her best.

The five were on their way back to the House now. Kevin and Mike were up in the front, and Jayden in the back. She and Mia were in the middle, but Mia was lagging behind. She looked like something was bothering her.

So Emily slowed down in order to let Mia catch up with her.

"Mia?" Her voice was low so the others wouldn't heart them. "You alright?"

"I know you guys were never in danger from that trap at Pier 32, but I still feel so guilty," Mia quietly confessed, refusing to look up from the ground. "What if we didn't have Antonio? What if you guys hadn't tracked down my real location?"

"Mia...those brides would probably still be captured if it weren't for you willing to sacrifice yourself to save them. You _also_ wouldn't have unlocked Havoc Mode without it."

"Thanks, Emily, but you know Dayu? I can't help but feel that her plan with that wedding dress evolved from past sorrow," Mia finally met Emily's hazel eyes.

Emily gave her a soft smile. "Don't worry about that right now. At least the dress is gone."

"Yo, guys!" Mike called out to them. He and Kevin were standing in front of a bakery. "Let's get a victory treat!"

"He's right," Emily told Mia. "We may not have defeated Dayu for good, but at least the brides are safe. Right?"

"Yeah," Mia finally smiled and nodded, before she turned and walked toward Mike and Kevin. "As long as we get something for Antonio!"

"Alright!" Mike cried out with excitement, making Kevin chuckle at his antics.

Meanwhile, Emily had turned back to Jayden, who had also lagged behind.

Jayden's mind was filled with the stranger earlier, the one who protected Dayu.

"Jayden!" Emily's cheerful voice snapped him out of his reverie, and he looked at her in her puppy eyes. "Come get a victory goodie with us!" Jayden glanced over at the other three, who motioned him to join them. " _Samurai Rangers, Cupcakes Are Ours_!" Jayden couldn't help but laugh out loud when she did that.

"Why not?" He finally replied. "As long as it's not wedding cake," he joked, making Emily laugh, before the two crossed the street to the bakery.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _ **Original Shinkenger Episode: Act 8**_

 _ **Original PRS Episode: There Go the Brides**_

 **Note: Mia's Havoc Mode rollcall, I'm imagining, is similar to Kyoryu/Dino Charge Violet/Purple's.**

A/N: Do review, please. **If you guys have any ideas you want me to consider adding, please PM me.** A preview for the next chapter:

 _ **Season 1, Episode 9:**_ _"True Blue"_

 _"None of them were willing to fight one of their own, in a fight to the death, but it had to be done."_


	9. 9: True Blue

A/N: I hereby present to you all my own version (yes, another one) of Power Rangers: Samurai. It does have a much darker theme to it than Saban's version (which I do not hate, as you can obviously tell by my other PR stories). There were some flaws, yes, and I'm still going to use some terms you are familiar with.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Power Rangers Samurai or Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. I just own most of the plot and the characters and things you don't recognize from the original version.

 _ **I AM SO SORRY THIS IS LATE!**_

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _"None of them were willing to fight one of their own, in a fight to the death, but it had to be done."_

 **Better Together**

 _ **Power Rangers: Samurai REDO**_

 **Season 1, Episode 9:** _True Blue_

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

 _ **May 28, 2014**_

"What are you doing here, Deker?" Xandred asked, quietly _**(meaning either he was calm or he was on the verge of blowing a gasket, though considering the current situation, he was probably the latter)**_. "You are no longer welcome here. Or did you forget that?"

"Or do you expect a reward for saving Dayu?" Octoroo added.

"Are you kidding me?!" Dayu shrieked. "I had everything under control!"

"I do not expect a reward," Deker calmly replied, in his Nighlock form. "Nor have I forgotten my dishonorable discharge. I have come to ask you about your plans for dealing with the Rangers."

"I don't need your help!" Xandred cried out.

"Yes, you clearly have everything under control," Deker replied with sarcasm, before sobering up. "I just need to make sure my plans don't interfere with yours."

"Your plans?" Octoroo asked.

"Yes, I plan on fighting the Red Ranger," Deker confirmed. "I need to make sure our plans don't clash."

"Do whatever you want," Xandred ordered. "I don't care. I have a headache."

"I see you're still suffering from the Grand Shoguns' six-part Seal from four hundred years ago, the Seal that trapped you down here," Deker commented. "Go on and take your medicine, Master Xandred. You need it."

"Are you calling me weak?!" Xandred was enraged.

"Not at all," Deker calmly answered as he headed towards the exit. "Just stating a fact."

"Eh-HEM!" A new Nighlock boarded the Junk Ship. "The real star of the show has arrived! Forget Deker!"

"Action Commander Madimot! What are you doing here?" Octoroo asked. "Get lost." He caught a glimpse of Deker leaving the ship. "Deker, wait, come back!"

"We don't need him," Madimot said. "I'm the baddest of the bad of the Sanzu!"

"Buzz off," Dayu cut in. "You're nothing but talk."

"Let's see what you say when you look outside." Madimot slammed his whip on the ground, creating a large crack sound in the air.

Dayu and Octoroo looked outside the windows of the Junk Ship.

"No way! Is that–?"

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Spiral Forest State Park, Panorama City, California**

Antonio had his phone out, constantly looking down at it and the contents on the screen, as he led Jayden and Emily through the local state park at Spiral Forest.

Emily really had no idea how she got looped into this. Antonio and Jayden were just talking at breakfast this morning about something secretive before taking Emily to the side and asking her to come with them. Not really having anything to do today, as Ji had declared it a free day _**(which meant no training and that the Rangers could do whatever they wanted today)**_ , Emily had agreed, but not once did they tell her what they were up to _**(and Emily was too afraid to ask)**_.

And now here they were. And Emily was getting very tense and slightly agitated at the fact that she knew nothing about why they needed her.

"I'm not complaining about you guys taking me with you," Emily began, assuming this was the correct time to ask them why she was brought here, "but why exactly are we here? Assuming we're here for a reason..."

"We are," Antonio replied. "Last night, there was a large energy surge that originated in this forest with a energy signature matching the lost Tiger Zord."

"And we brought you with us because it's indicated to be buried underground," Jayden added. "Your Symbol Power over Earth might come in handy if we need to dig it out."

"Oh, okay," was Emily's response. Everything made a lot more sense now. "But is there a reason for being so secretive about it?"

"We've gotten false readings in the past," Jayden was the one who answered this question, "and not just for the Tiger Zord. If these readings are also false, then we won't get the others' hopes up for nothing."

"We haven't even told Ji yet," Antonio added. "You're the only one who knows aside from us, Em."

Emily nodded in understanding, "Very well. I promise to keep it secret."

"Thank you," Antonio said, before leading them deeper into the forest.

After a while of walking through the forest, Antonio spoke up, looking up from his phone, "these are the coordinates of the Energy surge. It's the real Tiger Zord underneath the ground, alright."

"Ah, if only you had gotten here sooner, Rangers," the trio immediately stood on guard when they heard a voice not belonging to any of them.

Their gazes wandered with caution until Jayden found the source, "Nighlock!"

"That's Action Commander Madimot to you!" The Nighlock sounded insulted. When he finished his complaint, he lifted his shield and threw a couple of blasts from it at them.

The three managed to successfully avoid the blast by rolling off to the side _**(Antonio being ushered by Jayden)**_ , Jayden and Emily morphing on the way.

 _ **"Go, Go Samurai!"**_

Their Spin Swords unsheathed and ready to attack, Jayden turned to Antonio. "Take the other civilians and get yourselves somewhere safe. We'll call you when it's safe to come out, okay?"

Antonio was rather hesitant in following his best friend's order, but he did so anyway without any complaining whatsoever.

He just didn't feel comfortable with sitting back and watching from the sidelines anymore.

But Jayden was his best friend and had been since kindergarten, and Antonio knew that Jayden only thought about what was best for people _**(especially for the people he cared about)**_ , and Antonio trusted him with his life _**(especially since he was one of those people)**_.

He would never doubt Jayden. Not on his life.

When Antonio disappeared within the trees, Jayden was able to breathe a soft sigh of relief. He wished he could tell Emily to get to safety as well, but she was a Ranger, like him.

Not to mention, she was also stubborn to a fault.

Just like him.

Both Rangers attacked Madimot at the same time. The Nighlock used his shield to send a blast their way, but the two were easily able to dodge it.

"You know, two against one isn't fair," Madimot complained.

As soon as he said that, three more Samurai Rangers, in Green, Blue, and Pink landed in front of the Red and Yellow Rangers.

"And...it just got worse," the Nighlock face-palmed. "I forgot there were _five_ of you..."

"You two okay?" Mia asked Jayden and Emily.

"Yeah, we're fine," Emily replied. "We need to drive this creep away pronto."

"Why?" Mike asked, half joking. "Is there a secret treasure buried here?"

"Actually, there is," Jayden answered, completely serious. "In the form of the Tiger Zord."

"Don't get cocky yet, Rangers!" Madimot threatened, and the five Rangers stood in usual formation, ready to fight. "I still have a few aces up my sleeve! I am the baddest of the bad in the entire Netherworld!"

"Yeah?" Mike asked. "Let's see if you can back up all that talk."

"Back up? That's a great idea!" Madimot exclaimed, before calling out, " _Tiger Zord_!"

There was a large rumbling sound before the ground underneath them shook and trembled, and then out climbed a white mechanical tiger.

"It's the Tiger Zord!" Jayden exclaimed.

"I guess I didn't have to dig it out, after all," Emily commented, her eyes on the drills it had for all four of its legs.

"You remember the tragedy that took place many years ago that caused all the auxiliary zords to run away in fear?" Madimot asked, beginning his explanation. "Well, your Tiger Zord here fell into a crevice. I saved him, and made him my pet kitty. Or pet Tiggy, I should say."

Madimot slammed his whip onto the ground, and the Tiger Zord opened its mouth and blasted fire in the Rangers' direction. The five jumped out of the way just in time, just barely managing to avoid the Tiger Zord's attack.

"J-Jayden?" Mia shakily called out, "a-are you sure that's _our_ Tiger Zord?"

Jayden lowered his eyes. "I can feel the Symbol Power over Snow flowing within that Zord. Yeah...I'm sure..."

Emily turned to him, "But why would it attack us if it's one of our own?"

"I'm not sure," Jayden replied.

"Maybe it's being controlled or it's been brainwashed or something?" Mike suggested _**(trying to be helpful)**_.

"Possibly," was Jayden's response, "but I should remind you that the Zords are sentient beings, like us."

"So, it's possible that he's attacking us...by _choice_?" Kevin broke down Jayden's explanation.

"The Tiger Zord is actually a _female_ ," Jayden corrected, "but yes, it's possible."

"You done gossiping yet, Rangers?" Madimot asked, tapping his foot in clear and utter impatience. "If you want answers on how the Tiger Zord was turned against you, just watch. I have plenty of ammo to make a Ranger puppet. Who wants it?!"

 _'A Ranger puppet'_? Jayden asked himself.

Madimot's face began to glow purple, before he let the energy fire. Jayden immediately went for the two girls.

"Get down!" He ordered, pulling Mia and Emily down with him.

The purple energy ball was headed straight for Mike, who was taking a while to process what Madimot just said to focus on Jayden's order. "What?"

"Look out!" Kevin exclaimed, before pushing Mike to the ground, and letting himself get hit by the energy ball instead.

Kevin, still morphed, immediately fell to his knees, holding his head in pain.

"Kevin!" Mike asked, immediately getting up from his safe spot on the ground to rush over and see if his teammate was okay. "Are you okay? What happened?"

Kevin turned his helmeted head toward Mike slowly before curling up his gloved fist and giving the Green Samurai a fierce uppercut, which Mike could feel through his helmet. The Green Ranger stumbled backwards and fell to his knees, holding his cheek in pain.

"Ow, what was that for?" Mike exclaimed.

As Mia ran over to Mike's side, Jayden and Emily cautiously watched Kevin as he slowly stood up.

"Kevin?" Emily asked.

"He's in some kind of trance," Jayden quietly replied.

"Do you see now Rangers?" Madimot asked, appearing quite happy with the current circumstances. "These two aren't doing this by choice. My powers force them to see the real world, but twisted in their own worst nightmares. Forced reverse perspective, you could say." Emily stood up and made to run at Madimot in anger, but she felt Jayden hold her back just as fast by grabbing her shoulder. "Blue and Tiggy here no longer recognize you four as their allies, but rather, as their enemies." Madimot slammed his whip into the ground. "Blue, attack!"

Kevin pulled his Spin Sword and immediately swung at Mike and Mia, and the two immediately _**(though shocked)**_ moved out of the way.

"Kevin, _stop_ this!" Emily cried out, as Kevin struck Mia's shoulder.

"It's no use! He won't listen to anyone but me!" Madimot replied.

"We'll see about that!" Jayden yelled, jumping over Kevin's attack aimed at him.

When he landed, he anticipated Madimot's incoming attack and pulled out his Samuraizer.

"A renegade, huh? One Red Ranger puppet coming right up!" Madimot fired another energy ball at him.

 **"Symbol Power: Resist!"** Jayden wrote the appropriate symbol, happy that his Symbol Power easily deflected Madimot's spell, and put his Samuraizer away before then turning to his Sword to do all the talking instead. Madimot's shield, however, interrupted him.

 **"Havoc Mode, Engage!"** Emily called out, morphing into the said mode before pulling out her weapon. **"Spiral Earth Drill: Energize!"** Her drill was surrounded with yellow-colored energy, and Emily jumped, aiming her drill at Kevin.

But the Blue Ranger saw it coming and easily deflected it with his Diamond Wave Trident.

The combined energy caused both Havoc Modes to disengage and both Rangers to stumble backward, and Emily to fall to her knees, almost out of breath.

Kevin then turned to his Dragon Disk and hooked it up to his Spin Sword and spun it. **"Spin Sword: Dragon Splash."**

Kevin's voice was emotionless as his attack too much for Emily, Mia, and Mike to handle, forcing the three to dis-engage their default morph as well.

"Yes, yes, yes!" Madimot cried in utter glee, his shield and Jayden's sword still in a fierce struggle for the 'loudest voice'. "Good work, Blue!"

Jayden's head immediately snapped over to the scene Madimot was addressing. He saw _**(in complete horror)**_ an brainwashed Kevin standing over his three de-morphed teammates _**(whom he easily overpowered)**_.

"NO!" Jayden cried, before pushing Madimot, then jumping up and landing in front of the other three, ready to protect them.

"I'm sorry, Jay," he heard Emily weakly call out. "I can't fight him. There's no way."

That's when he made the choice.

"That's alright, Em," Jayden replied, pulling out his Lion Disk. **"Spin Sword: Blazing Fury!"**

But Jayden's attack didn't do so much damage as it provided an effective cover for the four's escape, because when the fire went out, the four Rangers were gone.

"Cowards!" Madimot called after them. "But I'll let it slide this time, because I'm drying out. Blue, go wait with Tiggy until I return."

"As you wish, Master," spoke Kevin's unemotional voice as he sheathed his Sword.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

"This is bad," Ji said with completely honesty that evening _**(it was dinnertime, but nobody was hungry)**_. "The records say that there is no proven way to completely drive out Madimot's mind spell."

"Thank you, Ji, for your brutal honesty," Jayden quietly replied, currently sitting on one of the cushioned chairs, his hands folded like he was thinking. "But that's not really something the others need to hear right now." He motioned to Mike, Mia, and Emily on the other side of the room, nursing their own and each others' wounds, given to them by Kevin.

"I could have stopped him," came Emily's quiet voice. "Our Havoc Modes clashing was enough to catch Kevin off-guard, but I...I couldn't..."

Emily trailed off, and Jayden _**(gently)**_ picked up where she left off, "It's alright, Em. No one blames you. Why don't you all go to bed and rest? You need it."

Mike was gentle in leading in Mia and Emily back to their rooms. Antonio then turned to Jayden, and asked, "You have a plan, don't you?"

"Go to bed, Antonio," Jayden repeated, and that was all he said.

Antonio felt a little hurt about this. _**(Did Jayden really fully trust him? Or was the Red Ranger trying to protect him and the others?)**_ But he obeyed his best friend.

As soon as Antonio was gone, Ji spoke up this time, "Will you tell me your plan, or will you just tell me to go to bed as well?"

"Cut the sarcasm, Ji," Jayden's voice was no longer gentle. This time, it was stoic and sounded a little angry. "This is serious."

"Very well. What is your plan?" Ji asked as Jayden stood up.

"During the fight, there was one moment where my Symbol Power was able to block Madimot's spell completely," Jayden confessed, beginning his explanation. "If I infuse the Resist Symbol within a blank disk, that should drive the Nighlock's spell out of both Kevin and the Tiger Zord. What do you think?"

"It's not about what I think," Ji replied, solemnly. "It's about the risks involved."

"I know it's dangerous," Jayden began before his great-uncle cut him off.

"You're _damn right_ it's dangerous! Infusing that much Symbol Power into someone or something could kill Kevin or damage the Tiger Zord beyond repair, maybe even both! It could also kill _you_ if it backfires!"

"Keep your voice _down_ , Ji," Jayden quietly retorted. "The others are still asleep. But what other choice do I have? Using the Disk means I have a chance of freeing them while also keeping them _alive_. Without the Disk, I free them both but at the cost of their own lives, the other four's delicate emotional states, and my own sanity. Either way, I'll have to fight two of my closest allies."

Ji took a deep breath after Jayden finished his rant. "I know, and I'm very sorry for getting cross with you. I was just trying to remind you of the dangers that come with this."

"I know, but you can't change my mind," Jayden said.

"Jayden," Ji tried to say.

"No, Ji, this isn't up for debate," Jayden calmly interrupted. "There comes a time where the leader must make the decision for everyone. This is one of them."

And Ji could only watch as his great-nephew left the room.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

 _ **May 29, 2014**_

That next morning, Emily woke up from a terrifying nightmare about a house flooding that felt all too real. But this time, it wasn't about the forest house.

 _It was the Shiba House itself._

Emily curled up into a ball, her hazel eyes glistening with tears.

It was just a dream, just a nightmare. It wasn't real. It was just a figment of her imagination.

Her train of thought was derailed by the Gap Sensor going off.

Her nightmare, however real it felt, could wait.

Mike and Mia met her at the Gap Sensor map table, and Ji and Antonio were there also. But...

"Johnson and Miller Construction Site," Ji conveyed.

"Where's Jayden?" Mike asked.

"You just missed him," Antonio replied. "As soon as the Gap Sensor went off, he was halfway out the door."

"He was ready, wasn't he?" Mia asked.

"Yes," Ji responded, with hesitation. "Jayden has a plan. He was up all night working on it."

"He's planning on fighting Kevin, isn't he?" Mike asked. Antonio glanced up in interest.

Ji's silence answered all their questions.

"Are you _kidding_ me? He's acting like he has no choice!" Mike shouted out in protest.

"Because he doesn't, Mike."

"There's _always_ a choice!" Mia stepped forward, backing up Mike the entire way.

"He told me to pass a message onto you all," Ji cut in, before reciting, word for word, " _'This isn't up for debate. There comes a time where the leader must make the decision for everyone. This is one of them.'_ Have faith in your leader."

"ENOUGH!" Emily yelled out, quiet up until this point. She ordered, "Even if Jayden _let_ us debate this, we don't have the _time_ to do so! Our job, no matter how we feel in any situation, is to protect those who cannot protect themselves! So, let's just go out there and do our jobs while Jayden finds a way to free Kevin."

Emily then ran out of the House, intent on doing just that.

Mia turned to Mike. "She's right, you know. Protecting the innocent always comes first."

 _ **'I don't care if you guys want to reveal your identites or not,'**_ Emily had once told them. _**'What I do care about is if you let your reasons for hiding your faces get in the way of protecting all those who stand in harm's way, forced to or not.'**_

Mike didn't say anything. He only followed Mia out the door, unable to debate the truth in Emily's words.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Johnson and Miller Contruction Site, Panorama City, California**

Madimot was waiting for him when Jayden arrived at the site the Gap Sensor indicated. So was Kevin.

Jayden was stoic and silent on the outside, but on the inside, he was screaming.

He didn't want to do this.

"It's about time, Red Ranger," Madimot exclaimed.

"Wake up, Kevin, please," he whispered.

"Sorry, Red," Madimot replied. "Not gonna happen. Now, make this fight count. Or I'll make Blue turn on himself."

Jayden heard footsteps run up from behind him.

"Jayden," he heard Mike say. "We're here to help!" He, Mia, and Emily held up their Samuraizers.

"No!" Jayden's reply was immediate. "I can't put anyone else at risk because of this!"

"But-!" Mia began to protest.

"NO!" Jayden's shout sounded desperate _(Emily realized)_.

Emily lowered her eyes and her Samuraizer, and Jayden heard her say, "Mike, Mia, stand down."

"Emily, are you insane?" Mike asked.

"Stand. Down." was all she said before turning back to watch the fight.

" _Thank you_ , Emily," Jayden quietly said before turning back to Madimot and Kevin. "You want a show, Nighlock? Fine. I'll give you the show of your life."

"Oh, damn. I wish I brought some popcorn," Madimot sounded a little down because of this, as he lept up on top of a peice of machinery.

 **"Samuraizer! Go, Go, Samurai!"**

As Jayden morphed in a flash of red, Kevin drew his sword.

"Don't worry," Emily spoke up, sounding calm and sure. "He won't hurt Kevin. He's only doing this because he has to."

She heard Mia sniff. "I hope you're right."

Red and Blue circled around each other slowly, before Jayden stopped and lowered into a fighting stance, his sword slung over his shoulder.

Then, they both charged at each other, swords clashing, their feet dancing around each other.

Only when Jayden stumbled over a simple Dragon Splash attack, did any of the four audience members react to this current fight going on.

"What are you thinking, Shiba?! That's Kevin!" Mike yelled out.

"Kevin, stop this!" Mia cried. "You're fighting Jayden, someone you've known and respected for a while now! You can't do this!"

Emily's heart clenched in pain, the flooding Shiba House coming to mind _**(but this time, she could actually see flames begin to appear and take form as they dance in sync with the water)**_ , but she did not make a single peep.

"You three, shut your pie holes!" Madimot cried out, using his sheild to blast the other three Rangers and sending them to the ground.

The trio stirred and struggled to get up, when they heard boots walking towards and then between them, and a stranger's voice saying, "Looks like we have a winner."

" _Shut up_ ," Emily replied, her voice dark and angry. "Jayden's not losing."

"Who the hell are you?" Mike asked, as the trio finally got to their feet and were able to get a good look at the strange man who was talking to them _**(he was a man with long black hair with goatee wearing all black clothing and a white long-sleeved coat)**_.

"It doesn't matter who I am," the man said. "What matters is who's winning."

"I said, _shut up_ ," Emily repeated, angrier than the first time she said this. "Jayden is not losing."

"Of course he isn't," the man agreed with her, surprisingly all three of them. "It's the man in blue who is losing."

"How can you tell?" Mike asked.

"Because he's fighting as if he's trying to win a training point rather than a real duel," the man replied, not taking his eyes off the said fight, his words perfectly in sync with Jayden and Kevin's actions. "It's a lot different when you're fighting for survival. You fight with instinct. You have to watch your target like a hawk. It's easy to get tired in a long battle when there's no one around to say stop."

Jayden and Kevin's swords clashed once more before Jayden sent a kick to the latter's chest, effectively knocking the brainwashed Ranger to the ground. Kevin quickly got up and pointed his sword at Jayden.

"The Red Ranger has a good stance," the man continued, referring to Jayden having his sword slung over his shoulder. "It reduces arm fatigue. He'll stay strong." Emily then was able to take note of Kevin's shaking arms. They were trembling due to exhaustion. "And when Blue goes for the point, that's when he'll strike."

"Resist..." Emily muttered, noticing the kanji on the white disk Jayden had hooked up to his sword. " _That's_ why he's fighting Kevin," Emily realizes. "Jayden's looking for an opening, because he has to get in a close enough position to use the Disk. To free Kevin."

"Exactly," the man confirmed. "That's the difference between these two. That's why the man in Red is the one who's winning."

"Brace yourself, Kevin," Jayden warned right before Kevin charged at him. Jayden was easily able to block him, before spinning the resist Disk, surrounding his sword with fire and his entire body with a red aura. He himself spun around to disarm Kevin and before landing the decisive blow on Kevin's torso.

The five people watching the fight watched a red lightning shot through Kevin's body, before the Resist Symbol flashed and a black ball of energy escaped from Kevin and dissipated not long after.

"What happened?!" Madimot shrieked, as Kevin de-morphed and fell to the ground, his brain fuzzy.

The man stayed behind as Mia, Mike, and Emily ran forward to help their newly healed friend. "I was right in choosing the Red Ranger as my opponent for my sword Uramasa," was all he said before he simply walked away from the scene.

Kevin woke up to Mia's face _**(which was blurry at first, but soon cleared up as he got his head and brain cells back under his control)**_.

"Kevin, are you okay?" She was asking him.

"Give him some air, Mia," Mike was saying.

Kevin coughed once. "Yeah, I'm fine now. W-What happened?"

"Jayden saved you from Madimot's mind control," Emily spoke up, her voice sounding distant and somewhat distracted.

Mia and Mike helped Kevin sit up, as the latter asked, "Yeah, I do remember Madimot having some control over my mind. How'd Jayden set me free?"

"That's a good question, actually!" Madimot screeched. "Red Ranger, answer the question!"

Jayden finally spoke up, causing the other Rangers _**(plus Madimot)**_ to get a good look at him _**(and understand why Emily was so distant: she was starstruck)**_.

Jayden was in a Ranger suit exactly like the one in the sketch from the book Ji had shown them.

 _He had unlocked Havoc Mode._

Jayden held up the Resist Disk. "The records we have on you claim there is no absolute way to drive out your mind control completely. But when we came into contact in that forest, I was made aware that there _was_ a way. The Resist Symbol, which shielded me from the spell you fired at me. That's when I realized that I could use it to free Kevin. And now that I know it works, I can use it to free the Tiger Zord too."

" _WHAT_?!" Madimot shrieked, as Jayden turned to his team.

"I'm sorry, all of you, for placing you in this situation," the Red Ranger gently told his team. "I especially apologize to you, Kevin."

"Me?"

"I had to fight you in order to get in a close enough position to use the Disk," Jayden explained, a tight knot in his throat from the mere thought of this. "Not to mention, infusing you with that much Symbol Power could have killed you, and even me, if it backfired."

That was how he got his Havoc Mode, Emily realized. He was willing to use a dangerous method to free Kevin if it meant keeping the world safe and the team together.

Emily smiled.

"I forgive you, Jayden," replied Kevin, with complete and utter honesty. "And thank you. Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to fight someone who isn't on my team."

"Then, let's go for it," Emily stepped up, taking the lead again, she and the other three in formation _**(Emily, Kevin, Mia, Mike)**_. **"Samuraizers!"**

 **"Go, Go, Samurai!"**

In a bright of their four respective colors, the other Rangers stood, morphed and ready to fight.

"Tiger Zord!" Madimot screeched. "Crush them!"

They felt the rumble again as the Tiger Zord dug his way from the underground to join the fight.

Jayden unhooked the Lion Zord from his belt. "You guys go and deal with Madimot. I'll deal with the Tiger Zord."

"You got it!" He heard from Mike and Mia. Kevin only nodded and ran off to join them.

Emily said, "Good luck!" before joining them.

"Thanks, Em. **Samuraizer! Lion Folding Zord, Ready!** " When his Sword was placed in the slot at his side, Jayden faced forward, where the Tiger Zord was. "I really hate putting another ally in harm's way, but there is no other choice."

 _ **"Then, let's do it,"**_ he heard Lion tell him. _**"The sooner you use that Disk, the sooner you can end this fight."**_

"You're right," Jayden admitted. "Alright, then, Lion, let's prove you're King of the concrete jungle."

Jayden motioned Lion to run forward. Tiger did the same. The two clashed and sparks flew. Jayden struggled to keep his ground.

"I'm sorry, Tiger. There's no choice," he repeated as the two mechanical cats parted and backed off from each other. "This is for the greater good."

He motioned Lion to jump and knock Tiger onto her side, before Lion knocked her back.

Once Jayden saw Tiger's red eyes turn off, he chose that moment to act. He jumped out of Lion's cockpit and into Tiger's, where he placed his Sword into the slot, the Resist Disk hooked up to it.

"Come on," he quietly pleaded, as the Resist Disk's power began to seep its way into Tiger's circuits. "Please, work."

Jayden immediately breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the Resist Disk flash white once before turning into the new Tiger Disk.

As Kevin struck the Nighlock across the shoulder, Emily halted when she saw Tiger's red eyes turn back on and regain her footing after seeing a dark cloud rise up out of the zord and dissipate.

"Yes!" She cheered. "He did it! The Tiger Zord's back on our side!" She felt the other three Rangers gather around her.

"Oh, no!" Madimot cried. "Now, they've turned Tiggy against me, too!"

"Face it, Nighlock!" Kevin said, as the four held up their respective colored Power Disks.

"Show's over," Emily finished, as the four hooked up the mentioned Disks to their Swords.

"I think not!" Madimot held up his shield and threw a blast at them, surrounding them all with an explosion.

But the four jumped forward out the explosion, catching the Nighlock off-guard. **"Spin Sword: Four Element Strike!"**

Mia struck him first, then Mike, then Emily, and finally Kevin landed the final blow.

"No fair! You teamed up on me!" Madimot cried, hurting all over.

The four Rangers faced the other direction, saying, "Now, that's teamwork!" as Madimot's first life ended in an explosion.

"Great job, you guys!" Jayden called, feeling an extreme sense of pride for his team, as Madimot grew into a giant.

"Now, you've got a big problem!" He sounded angry as he then stared into the face of the healed Tiger Zord. "Bad kitty! You're a bad boy!"

"The Tiger Zord is _female_ ," Jayden reminded. He said nothing else, only correcting the Nighlock's mistake.

Tiger charged forward, running right through the blasts Madimot threw at them. Madimot stumbled backwards as Tiger's claws scratched him.

"It's time to get your claws dirty, girl," Jayden said, as he motioned Tiger to turn around.

 _ **"It's payback time!"**_ He heard Tiger say, as she lowered all four of her legs, her spinning claws loosing up the dirt underneath her. When she got to Madimot, she scratched with her claws once more, saying, _**"This fault is all yours, Nighlock!"**_ as she turned around again and flew away.

Madimot quickly realized why Tiger had said such a thing, as the dirt underneath him was so loose, it came apart and caused him to sink, trapping him in the so-mentioned _'fault'_. "What is this?!"

"Nice job, Tiger," Jayden said. "Now, it's time to team up! Emily!"

"Roger that!" Emily replied, she and the other three watching this fight happen.

 **"Samuraizers!"**

 **"Dragon Folding Zord!"**

 **"Turtle Folding Zord!"**

 **"Bear Folding Zord!"**

 **"Ape Folding Zord!"**

 **"Ready! Zords Combine! Samurai Megazord, We Are United!"**

The Megazord and the Tiger Zord now stood side by side. Jayden unsheathed his Sword and spun the Tiger Disk. _**"Samurai Artillery!"**_ The Tiger Zord roared as it shifted its parts in order for it to fit onto the Megazord.

"Tiger Drill Megazord, Armed for Battle!" All five called out, standing in their usual formation with Jayden in the middle _**(also still in Havoc Mode)**_.

As Madimot finally got free of all the dirt trapping him, the Megazord unsheathed its sword.

The sword clashed with Madimot's shield multiple times, but the Rangers found that they couldn't get through it.

"Your Megazord is useless!" Madimot yelled with glee. "My shield is the real deal!"

But he was caught off guard by the Megazord striking him with the four drills attached to it _**(from the Tiger Zord's four legs)**_.

Madimot threw more blasts at him from his shield, but the Megazord charged right through it.

"He's right, though," Mike told his team. "We need something else to break his shield."

"The Tiger Drill can do it, no problem," Jayden said. "But she says she needs some extra drill power. Em?"

"On it," Emily caught his drift. **"Havoc Mode, Activate!"** Once she was morphed into the said mode _**(the five still in usual formation)**_ , the others made the Megazord sheath its sword _**(though they didn't do so themselves)**_. "Tiger!"

All Emily had to do was call out. Tiger immediately responded, _**"I'm ready! Sync your Spiral Drill with mine and all together, we can nail him for good!"**_

"Right! **Spiral Earth Drill: Energize!** " Emily called out, her Drill perfectly in sync with Tiger's.

 **"Katana Power: Tiger Drill Charge!"** The Rangers thrust their Swords forward _**(and Emily her Drill)**_ , as the combined power finally broke Madimot's shield and ended him for good.

"Samurai Rangers, Victory is Ours!" Jayden announced.

"Welcome back, Tiger!" Emily exclaimed.

 _ **"Thank you,"**_ she heard Tiger reply. _**"It's good to be back."**_

Underneath their Havoc Mode helmets, both Jayden and Emily _**(the only ones who could hear her)**_ smiled.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

As Antonio watched the others as they played a game with their respective folding zords, Kevin sat off to the side, Jayden next to him.

When Mia cheered for her _"doubles six, yeah, whoo!"_ , Kevin turned to her before turning away and sadly confessing, "You know, after today, I don't really feel like playing."

"That's understandable," Jayden admitted. "But you shouldn't isolate yourself. It wasn't your fault."

"I could have killed you, or Mia, or Mike, or Emily! Or even all four of you!" Kevin exclaimed, causing the other four teen occupants of the Shiba House _**(plus the other three Folding Zords)**_ to pay attention to the duo's conversation more than their game.

"It wasn't your fault," Jayden repeated, fully aware of everyone paying attention to them. "Besides, I had to fight against a fellow Ranger too. But unlike you, I actually control over my actions and my thoughts. The Resist Disk being the only choice I could make in that instance was a partial lie. I could've also just...killed you without using the Disk, but that would have made all of us suffer. I didn't want to make that choice. I couldn't. Either way, I had to fight you, Kevin. And sometimes, we have to do things we don't want to do, and things we're not comfortable with, in order to do what's right. None of us are safe from it."

Emily was quiet for a minute as the six processed this, no one able to convince themselves that it was false _**(because it was all true and they knew it)**_ , before speaking up with a small sweet smile across her face. "He's right, Kev." He and Jayden glanced at her. "So, don't beat yourself up for it. You too, Jayden. That's an order." Jayden was unable to stop the smile that appeared when she said that last line. "Besides, all of us are broken in some way. None of us are perfect. We have all have things that we regret. Okay?"

Kevin then smiled and nodded.

"Good. Now, both of you, come on and join us," Emily said, feeling a new warmth in her heart as all six came together, physically and emotionally.

As Emily suggested a new game, one that included Antonio, Jayden was unable and unwilling to convince himself that Emily was wrong.

 _Because she was right. The whole way._

His team wasn't perfect. They were all flawed and broken in many different ways.

But so was he.

And he wouldn't change that for the world.

His team was broken, but it was good.

 _Yep, still good._

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _ **Original Shinkenger Episode: Act 9**_

 _ **Original PRS Episode: I've Got a Spell on Blue**_

 **Note: Jayden's Havoc Mode rollcall (though it didn't happen in this chapter; I'm imagining) is similar to Kyoryu/Dino Charge Red's. And** _ **yes**_ **, the Zords have genders too. Lion, Dragon, Bear, and Beetle are all male. Turtle, Ape, Tiger, and Swordfish are all female.**

A/N: Do review, please. **If you guys have any ideas you want me to consider adding, please PM me.** A preview for the next chapter:

 _ **Season 1, Episode 10:**_ _"Under the Weather"_

 _"All Mike wanted was someone to tell him he was good enough, but the only one who could help him was the one he fought with the most."_


	10. 10: Under the Weather

A/N: I hereby present to you all my own version (yes, another one) of Power Rangers: Samurai. It does have a much darker theme to it than Saban's version (which I do not hate, as you can obviously tell by my other PR stories). There were some flaws, yes, and I'm still going to use some terms you are familiar with.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Power Rangers Samurai or Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. I just own most of the plot and the characters and things you don't recognize from the original version.

 _ **I AM SO SORRY THIS IS LATE!**_

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _"All Mike wanted was someone to tell him he was good enough, but the only one who could help him was the one he fought with the most."_

 **Better Together**

 _ **Power Rangers: Samurai REDO**_

 **Season 1, Episode 10:** _Under The Weather_

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

 _ **June 2, 2014**_

Mike was just outside the kitchen, on his personal, forest green-colored iPhone. "How is he now?"

 _"Michael, honey, you asked me that thirty seconds ago,"_ his mom, Carmen, replied. _"And the answer is still the same. His fever is still pretty high, but he can keep down water."_

"I know," Mike replied, pinching the bridge of his nose out of stress. "I'm just worried. If David hadn't been waiting for me last night in the rain, or better yet, if I had actually been there-"

 _"Don't blame yourself, honey,"_ Carmen was quick to answer. She didn't like it when her sons put themselves down. It probably stemmed from their dad always talking down to them like they were maggots and he was the exterminator _**(one of the many reasons Carmen had divorced him)**_. _"You were busy."_

"I should've called him," Mike cut in, "to let him know, at least."

Last night, David was counting on Mike to pick him up from daycare, so he stood out in the rain, for an hour and a half, before Mike remembered about it during Ji's after-dinner training. He then swiftly called his mom to say that he was busy and couldn't pick David up.

It was his fault David was sick. It was his fault that David would start out his summer break in bed with a fever.

 _"Don't feel guilty,"_ Carmen replied, as if sensing her oldest son's thoughts. _"There was a bug going around at his school. He probably caught it."_

"I'm sorry," Mike said, after taking a deep breath to ease his stress. "I really am."

"Mike," the said Green Ranger jumped out of his skin. He turned to face Mentor Ji.

"Hold on a minute," Mike said into the phone before placing his hand over the speaker and turned to Ji. "Yeah?"

"There's a meeting I need everyone to be apart of," Ji replied. "You're the only one who's not there."

"Just one minute, please?" Mike asked Ji, referring to his phone call.

"Now." Ji's order was solid and absolute. He stood there as Mike turned back to his phone.

"I'll call you back," Mike said before hanging up. He walked past Ji with a solid glare on his face.

Ji was unfazed by Mike's stink eye as he followed the Green Ranger to the Gap Sensor table, where the other five residents were already seated. Mike took the only open seat next to Mia and _**(at one of the heads of the table)**_ Antonio. Kevin sat at the other head with Jayden and Emily on the other side.

"Sorry, I was late," Mike said.

Ji made a quick note that Mike's apology was gentle and genuine, which meant that Mike's glare was directed at him _**(which made Ji a little confused; what about him was Mike so mad about?)**_.

"It's alright," Jayden replied. _**(He knew something, Ji thought. Jayden knew something about Mike.)**_

"So, what's with this meeting so early in the day?" Antonio asked, after yawning. They hadn't even had breakfast yet.

Ji shrugged off his worries about Mike, and began his explanation. "Congratulations, all six of you, for finding three of the lost Zords. We now have the three Zords necessary to form the Samurai Battlewing."

"The what?" Kevin asked.

"The Samurai Battlewing," Ji repeated, as he opened one of the many ancient books to a page with a sketch of the mentioned mecha. "The Beetle, Tiger, and Swordfish Zords combine to form the Samurai Battlewing. It requires the three Rangers of these Zords to pilot it."

"But...they don't have Rangers," Emily pointed out.

"I know," Ji replied. "That's why you six are here. All of the Zords can appoint OverSeers until they find Rangers to bond with."

"OverSeers," Kevin said, slowly. "Or temporary pilots. Right?"

Ji nodded. "Correct, but the Zords must choose who OverSee them. I had Jayden use the Lion Zord to translate. The Tiger Zord has chosen Jayden and Emily both," Emily looked up in mild surprise as Ji handed Jayden the Tiger Disk, "because you two were the only ones who heard her cry of distress. Swordfish has chosen Kevin and, surprisingly, Antonio," Antonio was definitely surprised _**(because he was not a Ranger)**_ , as Ji gave Kevin the Swordfish Disk, "because you two helped her find her way back home." Ji now only held the Beetle Disk in his hand.

"What about the Beetle Zord?" Mia asked.

"That's the problem," Ji explained. "Beetle hasn't chosen an OverSeer yet, so I need you all to do some homework. You Rangers need to prove yourselves worthy of the Beetle Zord."

There was a silence as the group of teens digested that. Mike broke it, asking, "We'll work on it. Now, can I continue my phone conversation?"

"Mike!" Ji seemed to explode. "This is more important than you having a meaningless conversation with a girl!"

Mike had a very hurt look on his face when Ji said _'meaningless'_. Jayden was quick to notice and was quick to speak up. "He's calling his _mom_ , Ji. David's in bed sick due to yesterday's storm, and Mike wants to make sure he recovers."

Ji felt rather silly now. He remembered when David got injured and how strong Mike's big brother instincts were. He went after Rofer without remorse.

And that was the deal with the glare Mike gave him.

Ji had interrupted his _'meaningless'_ call with his mother, who was telling him how David was doing and feeling.

"I'm sorry, Mike," Ji replied after a moment of silence. "But my point still stands."

And the six teens watched Ji leave the room.

"Why do I have the feeling he didn't really mean that apology?" Mike asked, his teeth gritted.

"Ji has never really found it easy to apologize," Antonio was quick to explain, his voice sympathetic for Mike's situation at home. "Sincerely at least. He has a surprisingly big ego."

"Okay, then," Mike replied, in light of that bit of news, "I guess I won't hold it against him. By the way, Jayden, thanks for sticking up for me."

"No problem at all," Jayden said, with a gentle smile on his face. "I had an older sister, so I can put myself in your brother's shoes."

Antonio cautiously glanced at Jayden when he mentioned _**her**_. Ever since the incident, Jayden refused to talk about her or even bring her up, not even simply by _'sibling'_ , much less _'older sister'_.

"Had?" Emily asked, a look of worry clear on her face. "You mean she's not around anymore?"

Jayden refused to meet Emily's hazel eyes. "I don't feel like talking about it." He turned back to Mike, his voice sounding more confident, "Anyways, Mike, Ji also has a point. You need to find a way to balance _both_ worlds, so to speak."

As Mike dialed his mom's phone number, he replied, "Believe me, I'm working on it."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

Emily found the kitchen more cramped than she'd like _**(right now, she'd prefer it empty)**_. She wanted to be alone _**(she'd accept Antonio, though)**_. She needed to recover from what just happened.

She had been training in hand-to-hand combat with Antonio outside, when that forest house flashed through her mind. Not expecting it _**(up to this point, the visions only came when she was asleep)**_ , Emily stumbled backwards before quickly finding her balance again. When Jayden asked her if she was okay, Emily had shrugged it all off as a _"dizzy spell"_. Ji spoke up, saying Emily was probably dehydrated, and sent her inside to get some water.

Emily didn't want to admit it, but _it was possible that these visions of hers were getting worse_.

And since it was all most likely just her imagination, she was at a loss of what to do.

But Mike _**(the one in the kitchen with her)**_ obviously had his own problems right now. He was pacing, suffering from something Emily couldn't see.

"Mike?"

The Green Ranger's heart jumped when he heard her voice. He turned and sighed in relief when he saw who it was, "Oh. Emily. It's just you."

"Yep. It's me," Emily replied. She wanted to be alone, but Mike was clearly dealing with something. She couldn't ignore him when he obviously needed help. "Are you okay?"

She knew he wasn't. She was asking him that to see if he would lie to her or not.

It turned out that he didn't answer that specific question at all. He answered it with another question, one aimed at her.

"Em? What do you know about Symbol Power?"

What? That was not a question she was expecting.

"Well," Emily paused as she racked her brain for the information Antonio gave her when she first got her Samuraizer _**(he had explained Symbol Power briefly then)**_ , "our first morph with our Zords is what first unlocks it, and it's channeled through Symbols from within us." Emily paused again as she studied Mike's slightly confused expression. "At least, that's what Antonio told me." Emily decided to jump and ask a risky question. "Why?"

"Because you guys are all so good at it, and I'm not," Mike answered _**(for a moment, Emily thought that he'd dodge this question too)**_. "You and Jayden were both accepted by the Tiger Zord. Swordfish chose Kevin and Antonio, the latter of whom is not even a Ranger." _**(**_ **Yet** _ **, Emily mentally added.)**_ "And if you look outside, you'll notice that Mia is practicing her Symbol Power and it's amazing, probably the best out of all of us."

Mike was right. Well, right in the sense that Mia was out there, perfecting her Symbol Power. _**(And it was rather impressive.)**_

"Mike, it's okay," Emily quickly jumped in. Her gut was telling her that something bad was about to happen. "Everyone has a different method of learning, at different paces. It could be that Mia is a quick learner while you have a very different method of learning that Ji hasn't touched on yet. So it's taking you a bit longer to learn than the rest of us."

"Em, I appreciate you trying to make me feel better, but it's not going to work."

"Huh?" This is what really confused her. Yes, she was trying to help him, but she was speaking the truth. "Mike, what are you going on about?"

"You can come out and say it. I'm not good enough for this team, am I?" His question sounded like he was confident.

"Mike, you are good enough," Emily immediately replied. "Who said that you weren't?"

Mike was quiet, making Emily severely concerned for him. When he finally spoke, he was quiet, "I let Rofer hurt David and yesterday, I forgot to pick him up and left him to stand out in the rain. Now he's sick and it's all my fault."

Emily was quiet, as well, as she let his words sink in. "Mike, people make mistakes all the time, but that doesn't mean you're a bad person. True strength is realizing your flaws, admitting them out loud, and resolving to fix them and become a better person. That's what makes a real difference."

Mike was quiet as he digested this, but to Emily, even if Mike believed her, it was obvious that he still held some doubt towards her words.

"I think I need some air," Mike eventually spoke. "If anybody needs me, tell them I'll be out in the city."

Emily could only nod as she watched him leave. It's obvious he _didn't_ believe her.

 _Did Mike really have self-esteem issues worse than hers?_

Emily thought back to the vision of the forest house she just had _**(the one that brought her in here)**_. One section of the forest house was burning, but not the whole thing. In real life, as far as Emily knew, one section of the forest house was burned and in disrepair _**(so she was obviously seeing some form of its past)**_.

But the house as a whole was not burning, just one section.

As a team, they all worked together, like a well-oiled machine. If one part was malfunctioning _**(or on fire, in this case)**_ , then the machine didn't work right _**(or the house didn't stand strong and perfectly upright)**_.

But if the fire spread far enough, the entire house could burn down.

 _Oh, dear. This was bad._

Emily didn't know she was shaking until a hand was placed on her shoulder and a familiar baritone asked her, "You okay, Em? You're trembling."

Emily turned to meet Jayden's blue eyes.

"Me? I'm fine. I think it's Mike you need to be concerned about."

"Mike?" Jayden asked incredulously, as if he didn't believe her. "How so?" But he was still willing to listen to her.

Emily paused, not sure how to explain Mike's problems to someone who wasn't there to witness the conversation that just went down. "Well...he just asked me about Symbol Power and how it worked, because he was watching Mia practice hers and, because he's _bad_ at it, debating whether or not he belongs on this team. Then, he ran away into the city to think. I think this all came about after what happened with David yesterday, and it only got worse when Ji mentioned the Beetle Disk situation."

"It does makes sense, actually," Jayden surprised her with his response _**(she expected him to tell her not to worry about it, that it was Mike's problem, not hers)**_. "I don't know if he's told you this or not, but his dad wasn't exactly the best dad in the world. In basic terms, he was a bully and Mike and David were his constant victims, until Mike's mom found the courage to get a divorce."

"Oh." _**(It did actually make a whole lot more sense now.)**_ "He told you?"

"I figured it out on my own, actually," Jayden replied, "and when I confronted him about it, he confirmed that it was true and dove a little more into the details."

"I see," Emily glanced down at the ground, tears stinging her hazel eyes. "So, Mike is actually afraid of..."

"Turning into his dad," Jayden finished softly.

And to think, Emily wanted to emulate her dad because she thought he was the bravest man ever to live, when, all this time, she was blind to other people whose own dads were...not so nice.

Emily would _never_ forgive herself for her insensitivity.

She didn't realize she was crying until Jayden placed a gentle hand on her head and said, "Don't blame yourself for Mike's problems. He's been dealing with this way before he became a Ranger."

Emily nodded, but responded with, "Doesn't mean we shouldn't help him."

Jayden opened his mouth to say something, probably to agree with her _**(he looked like he did)**_ , but he was cut off.

Because that's when the Gap Sensor started blaring.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square, Panorama City, California**

Mike's _**(meant to be)**_ peaceful walk through the city _**(to clear his head)**_ was interrupted when he saw a little girl, soaking wet, sitting on the edge of the sidewalk, crying her eyes out.

He jogged up to her, kneeled, and asked, "Hey there, what's wrong?"

"Why didn't I bring an umbrella? I'm so dumb!"

He wouldn't admit this out loud to anyone, but Mike didn't like people being so hard on themselves _**(despite him doing so all the time)**_.

"It's alright," Mike was quick to speak up. "Today's a very sunny day. You didn't know it would rain."

Wait a minute...rain? In the middle of a hot summer day? Very unlikely.

"Exactly. I should be prepared for any type of weather!" the girl replied, not letting this go. "Ugh! So dumb, dumb, dumb!"

Mike glanced around the plaza to see a business man in the exact same situation: soaking wet and putting himself down for something. Now that Mike took a much closer look at the area around him, he found that a lot of people were like this _**(which really broke his heart)**_. That could only mean one thing.

Mike drew his Symbol and quietly morphed.

"Nighlock!" Mike yelled out, his heart filled with the need to get justice for all these people.

"Oh, hello, Green Ranger," the Nighlock replied. "Quiet lovely, isn't it? My harmony of delightful despair?"

"So, it was you," Mike muttered angrily. "The one who made those people lose all hope and basically turned them into Kevin?"

"Hey! I take offense to that, Hernandez!"

Mike was inwardly relieved to see that his four teammates had arrived, morphed and ready to kick some Nighlock butt, standing in usual formation.

"Relax, Cupcake, it was a joke," Mike replied, not taking his eyes off the enemy.

"Enough chatter, I suppose," the Nighlock spoke up. "Let's get down to the business at hand, shall we? I am Action Commander Desperaino. Long story short, my rain makes people feel sorrow and despair. Those people you saw have no hope anymore."

 _'I knew it,'_ Mike thought.

"That's horrible!" Emily gasped.

"That's why he's going down," Jayden responded, his voice hard and determined. **"Spin Sword!"**

Jayden drew his Sword and the other four quickly followed.

"Now that would too easy," he said, raising his staff, blasting the Rangers back and onto the ground behind them, hard.

So hard, Mike could definitely feel some bruises forming.

Kevin immediately got up and drew the Swordfish Disk. "Mia, we have to use our new Disks!"

"Right!" Mia replied, holding up the Beetle Disk.

 _Mike's world, right then, seemed to stop._

Mia already won the right to OverSee the Beetle Disk? But...Mike didn't even get a chance to prove himself. What gave Ji the right to swoop that low and twist Mike's heart out and smash it into pieces?

He understood why Swordfish had chosen Kevin and Antonio, because those two were the ones who helped her find her way back to them, back to where she truly belonged and always would _**(and Antonio really did deserve to be a Ranger after all he'd done for them)**_.

He understood why Tiger had chosen Jayden and Emily, because those two were _**(not only obviously the ultimate power couple and hearts of the entire team, but also)**_ the ones who heard her cry of distress, who helped her fight off the spell and defeat Madimot, the Nighlock responsible.

And, _believe it or not_ , he understood why Beetle chose Mia, because her Symbol Power was perfect, the best of all of them. She was also kind and well-determined, her emotions well balanced.

He wasn't mad at the other Rangers, Antonio, or the Zords. _He was mad at Ji_ , because Ji didn't even give him a chance.

Kevin hooked up the Swordfish Disk to his Hydro Bow, but before Mia hook the Beetle Disk up to her Sky Fan, Desperaino blasted it out of her hand, crying out, "No! Wrong as rain!"

Mia wrung her hand to shake off the pain as Mike quickly jumped into action and caught the Beetle Disk before it could hit the ground and _**(possibly)**_ shatter into a million pieces.

"Nice catch, Mike!" Mia called, running up to him. "Thanks for the assist!" He then held out her hand, waiting for him to give it to her.

But Mike didn't. He just glanced at it.

This was his chance to prove that he wasn't the weakest link of the team.

"I'm sorry, Mia," he muttered, his words leaving Mia confused. Mike refused to meet her chocolate brown eyes eyes.

"Huh?"

Mia wasn't the only one who was shocked when Mike instead hooked the Disk up to his Forest Spear. Kevin, Jayden, and Emily were too.

"Mike! What are you doing?!" Kevin immediately exclaimed, grabbing the Green Ranger's wrist, the one that was closest to where the Disk was locked in.

Emily realized with a sudden start that this is what her vision was warning her about. That one side of the forest house on fire, one cog in that well-oiled machine malfunctioning… _it was happening right now_.

Emily didn't need anyone to tell her that she was trembling this time. This time, it was obvious.

She knew Mentor Ji made a mistake giving Mia the Beetle Disk without Mike's consent. She could _literally_ feel Mike's anger radiating from his body _**(a power only she seemed to possess, which was another weird thing about her)**_.

Mia tried to break up the fight. "Kevin, just let him use the Disk. Let him try, at least. Maybe he holds more power over it than me."

"No way! Do you even see him, Mia?! He never took his training seriously!"

"So that's what this is all about, huh?!" Mike retorted at Kevin, his voice hot with anger.

"Well, consider it Ji's fault for not consulting Mike on his decision!" Mia yelled back, at Kevin.

Mike's heart jumped out of his chest. He didn't mean to start a fight between Mia and Kevin _**(childhood friends who obviously cared a lot about each other and obviously had some sparks between them)**_.

 _Just another reason why he was the weak link..._

Despairino pouted. "Now this is no fun. I'll come back to fight you all," he said, opening the umbrella attached to his head and leapt up into the air, "when you're not fighting yourselves."

While watching the trio argue, Emily and Jayden stood there, the former of whom was at a loss of what to do, and no matter what, Emily could not shake the worry she felt. A strong, sturdy hand fell on her shoulder, and she immediately felt some of the worry subside.

"Guys, now is not the time for an argument!" Jayden yelled beside her, scaring the wits out of the other three. "Get him now!"

Because even if she didn't know what to do, she felt a lot better knowing that _Jayden_ did and was not hesitant to do it.

As Mia hooked the Turtle Disk up to her Sky Fan instead, Kevin started shooting Swordfish-Charged arrows at the Nighlock, who dodged every single one without any amount of effort _**(Emily noted that he was more maneuverable in the air, which was becoming rather annoying)**_.

Mike went to strike with the Beetle-Charged Forest Spear, but...nothing.

It didn't work.

"What?! Why isn't it working?!" Mike cried out after he tried it again.

Kevin immediately turned to Mike. He didn't need to take his helmet off to show his anger. They could all feel it. "Mike!"

"I'm trying!" Mike called back.

Mia threw a strong wind at Desperaino before turning to the two males beside her. "Guys, cut it out!"

"Why you–?!" Desperaino had recovered quickly and threw a couple more blasts at the trio, but this time, they didn't see it coming.

Until it was too late to dodge it.

 **"Earth Slicer!"**

Mia, Kevin, and Mike all glanced up in time to see a Tiger-Charged Earth Slicer block Desperaino's blasts and then send it back twice as strong, hitting Desperaino square in the chest as a drill attack. The trio's eyes followed the trail of the Earth Slicer as it trailed back to Emily's hand.

"Great shot, Em," Jayden said, before calling back to the other three, "Guys, Emily's brought him down. Quit fighting and get him now!"

Emily's Tiger-Charged attack had knocked Desperaino back onto the ground, but he opened his umbrella again and flew straight up into the air.

"Not this time, Rangers!" The Nighlock now sounded extremely pissed off. "That _was_ a good shot, Yellow Ranger. You made me dry out. Later, losers!"

The five could only watch as Desperaino flew off, probably to a gap and then the Sanzu River to dehydrate.

"Mike! What were you thinking?!" Kevin demanded answers, which Mike was certain the others wanted as well.

Mike refused to look at any one of his teammates. He could feel their anger _**(in some)**_ and disappointment _**(in others)**_.

"I just wanted to...to help..." he trailed off.

He was the weak link of the team. All of this just solidified it.

Michael Hernandez felt lost, like he was in a void of darkness.

 _First his brother and now his team._

Who was next on Mike's list of people to disappoint?

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

"Mike! I am so disappointed in you!" To say that Ji was angry beyond reason _**(and Antonio confused and concerned)**_ was an understatement. "I thought you were actually listening to me and working hard to become an irreplaceable part of the team! I never thought you'd actually pull a stunt like that!"

This seemed to set off Mike's already blazing temper.

"I could say the same thing about you!"

"What?" Ji asked, confused.

"You gave Mia the Beetle Disk!"

"Yes, I did," Ji admitted the truth in this. "Why? Are you jealous?"

"No," Mike's answer surprised the other residents of the Shiba House, as well as the fact that he sounded extremely sincere.

"Y-You're not?" Mia asked.

"Of course not," Mike turned to her, guilt and sincerity clear in his eyes. "Your Symbol Power is probably the best of us all, and it's _definitely_ better than mine. If anyone deserves the Beetle Disk, it's you, Mia. I'm pissed off because Ji didn't even give me a chance to _try_ to prove my worthiness!" Before Ji could speak up, Mike continued with his rant. "Just because I didn't express interest in it, Ji, doesn't mean I _wasn't_ interested. I was working out my guilt from what happened to David yesterday, as well as checking up on him every hour to make sure he wasn't getting worse, so I was preoccupied and already busy with something else. I don't know if you already forgot, but to me, problems with my little brother _always_ come first." The room was quiet as they all remembered Rofer's attack on the Hernandez brothers. Justice for his brother was the reason Mike chose to join the team, to keep the same thing from happening to others. "I have nothing against Antonio or my fellow Rangers, but you, Ji, never give me a chance to explain my side and you never take the time to understand my side. I am so sick and tired of being misunderstood by you and I will not to stand for it anymore!"

The entire room was so quiet, you could hear a pin drop from outside. Mike turned to his team, his green-brown eyes filled with unshed tears he didn't care about hiding.

"I'm sorry I let you guys down," Mike whispered to them before grabbing his jacket from one of the seats, leaving behind his Samuraizer and the Bear Zord. And on his way out the door, his jacket accidentally snagged Ji's prized potted bamboo plant and knocked it to the ground.

 _But Mike was already gone._

Emily realized then that, by leaving both of his morphing items behind, Mike basically told them that he did not intend on coming back.

 _The forest house...it was burning again, the entire thing this time..._

Ji was taken back when he took a good look at Emily's face. Mike's death glare this morning and his rant just now barely fazed him, but Emily's tear-filled eyes somehow shook him to the core. And her gaze wasn't even aimed at him, but at the ground, at nobody in particular.

As Emily kneeled to help Antonio clean up the mess of dirt and broken pottery, and Kevin and Mia quickly ran off with the plant to replant it in the garden outside, Jayden turned to Ji.

"I'm very disappointed in you, Ji," Jayden spoke up quietly, being the first person to speak aloud since Mike left. "You handled that in _literally_ the worst way possible."

"Then what should I have done?" Ji asked.

"Definitely not yell at him," Jayden replied. "Mike was courageous enough to admit his mistake out loud in front of us and you, as well as apologize and mean it. Not only did you yell at him after he came clean about his mistakes, but not once did you make an effort to hear him out. All you were concerned about was making your _own_ feelings known. Sorry for saying this, and yes, I do have Mike's permission to talk about this, but you were acting exactly how Mike described _his dad_ to me."

Ji was quiet, digesting this. "Mike's dad… _abused_ him and David?"

"Mentally and emotionally, yes," Jayden confirmed. "Physically, Mike didn't say. But, listen to me, Ji. Way before becoming our Green Ranger, Mike had vowed to himself that he wouldn't turn into his dad. That's why he always puts his family and friends first. Yes, Mike has flaws and yes, he did make a mistake, but you, Ji, had an equal part in it."

Ji was quiet still. Jayden was right. There was certainly more to Mike than meets the eye.

"Then, what do you suggest I do?" Ji asked, sincerity lacing his voice. _**(Also, it was a little strange. Jayden was usually the one asking Ji for help/advice, rare was the situation switched around.)**_

"Go after him," Jayden said, holding out Mike's Samuraizer and the Bear Zord to Ji, "and tell him how to use Symbol Power."

"Symbol Power?" Ji asked for confirmation.

"Also apologize and mean it," Jayden replied, "but yes. He mentioned his Symbol Power being the worst of all of ours, and it's clear he has a different method of learning things. It's the only way to atone for this, Ji. After all, _'push a door that's meant to be pulled and it will never open'_. You taught me that."

Ji was quiet as he digested this. He then grabbed the items _**(belonging to Mike)**_ in Jayden's hands, nodding and agreeing with him.

 _Jayden truly did deserve to be the leader of this team._

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Central Park, Panorama City, California**

Mike had no idea when he passed out, but he realized that he did pass out when he woke up to Ji gently jostling him.

"Mike, wake up," Ji was saying, gently.

"Ji?" Mike asked, as his mind eventually got itself together and digested the currently situation.

He was lying down on a park bench _**(he remembered walking over here)**_ , and he remembered feeling sicker and sicker as he got farther away from the Shiba House _**(which left him confused)**_. But now that Ji was here, he was feeling much better than before.

"Hello, Mike," Ji replied as he helped Mike sit up. "I know you're mad at me, but I need you to come with me. I need to tell you something."

"What?" Mike asked, before Ji tossed him a motorcycle helmet.

 _Wait! Ji had a motorcycle?!_

"I always thought you'd have something like a horse," Mike confessed. "You know, like _old school_."

"Have you ever had to clean up after a motorcycle?" Ji asked.

"No."

Ji just smiled, "Keep it that way."

And Mike found himself smiling too.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

Desperaino stood of the Junk Ship, his umbrella open and soaking wet with River water. He shook off the water to get rid of it. "Ahh...much better. Is Master Xandred still asleep?"

"Yes, he's in a bad mood," Dayu replied, hunching over her Harmonium. "Now, leave! All this water is knocking my Harmonium out of tune."

"Fine," Desperaino said, moving towards the Ship's exit. "Though, I think it's an improvement..."

"BEAT IT!" Dayu yelled, clearly ticked off, and that jab at her music had pushed her over the edge. After Desperaino left, Dayu turned to Octoroo, who was hunched over the ancient texts. "What's eating at you, Noodle Face?"

"Oh, nothing," Octoroo replied. "Just thinking about what Deker said."

 _ **"I see you're still suffering from the Grand Shoguns' six-part Seal from four hundred years ago, the Seal that trapped you down here," Deker commented. "Go on and take your medicine, Master Xandred. You need it."**_

 _ **"Are you calling me weak?!" Xandred was enraged.**_

 _ **"Not at all," Deker calmly answered as he headed towards the exit. "Just stating a fact."**_

Six-part Seal?

What did that mean?

Deker definitely knew something they and Master Xandred didn't.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Stardust Forest, Panorama City, California**

With the motorcycle off in the distance, Ji led Mike through the forest.

"So, why are we here?" Mike asked. "What did you need to tell me?"

"Symbol Power is at the center of all nature," Ji began, surprising Mike. "It's been around since the birth of the universe. But how to use it? It's not about how strong your muscles are, how well you can take stress, or how good your calligraphy is, although those traits help you _control_ it. It's all about heart."

"Heart?" Mike asked. He didn't expect that.

"Yes, Symbol Power comes from within us. For Samurai Rangers, your Zords are what give you the ability to use it, however raw and uncontrolled it will be. The Samuraizers, designed and created by Antonio, are meant to help you control it," Ji explained. "Just look inside yourself, Mike, and connect with what the forest means to you."

Mike glanced up at the hundred year old trees around them. Everything made sense now. He eventually turned back to Ji and was surprised to see Ji holding out his Samurai to them.

"W-What are you doing?" Mike asked.

"I'm sorry, Mike," Ji replied, his apology honest and sincere. "There's no excuse I can give to make you forgive me, so I won't ask for forgiveness. I have been under quite a bit of stress lately, but it's my fault for snapping at you. I also apologize for not taking the time to understand you and your side."

Mike took his Samuraizer back. "I'm sorry, too, for yelling at you. And also, knocking over your plant. The only thing running through my mind then was _'get your point across but avoid yelling at your teammates'_."

"Well, mission accomplished," Ji replied. "You did get your point across, with Jayden's assistance. Did you actually give him permission to divulge your past?"

Mike nodded, "When push comes to shove, yes, he is allowed. Basically, _only if he sees it necessary_."

Made sense. "In the context of your rant and the situation at hand, it _was_ necessary. I was just checking."

Mike cracked a smile, "Did you really doubt your godson?"

"A little bit," Ji confessed, before correcting, "and _Antonio_ is my godson. Jayden is my _great-nephew_. Technically."

"Oh, right. Sorry. I got confused."

"It's alright," Ji replied. "Although, both boys are like _sons_ to me, so it's easy to see why you would mix them up."

Mike was quiet before changing the subject, "Hey, Ji. The farther I got away from the House, the sicker I felt, but when you showed up at the park, I immediately felt better. Why?"

Ji held out the Bear Zord _**(in Defense Mode)**_. "Because proximity to the Zord one is bonded with effects both the Ranger's and the Zord's physical health. At least, for the Samurai Rangers. It's unknown if that's how it is for other Ranger teams."

"So, I felt better when you showed up because you had the Bear Zord with you," Mike grabbed the Bear Zord from Ji's hand. The Zord roared before resuming its usual square shape, feeling much now that he and Mike were reunited.

Ji nodded. "In a nutshell."

"Huh. I didn't know that."

"The other Rangers don't either, aside from Jayden. The topic doesn't usually come up," Ji explained.

Mike's Samuraizer suddenly went off and Mike immediately picked up.

"What's up?"

Jayden was on the other end. _**"Mike, the Nighlock has returned. We need you."**_

"I'll be right there," Mike hung up.

Ji watched as Mike ran off towards the battlefield.

"Good luck."

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square, Panorama City, California**

Jayden, Emily, Kevin, and Mia all stood morphed in Havoc Mode, trying to hit Desperaino, who was, once again, flying in the air, easily dodging Kevin and Mia's arrows _**(Kevin via the Hydro Bow and Mia via the Windstorm Arrow)**_.

Emily threw the Tiger-Charged Earth Slicer, trying to use Kevin and Mia's arrow barrage as a distraction so she herself could land at least one hit.

But it didn't happen that way.

"Not this time, Yellow!" Desperaino saw her attack coming way before she threw her shuriken at him. He used his staff to block her shuriken and send it back at the Rangers with twice the fury.

All four Rangers were knocked backwards by the explosion caused by the Tiger-Charged Earth Slicer hitting.

 _ **"Oh no! I'm so sorry!"**_ Tiger called out as the four Rangers struggled to get up.

"It's okay, Tiger," Emily muttered. "It wasn't your fault."

"Emily's right, Tiger, so don't blame yourself," Jayden told Tiger before addressing his words to the others, "What we're doing isn't working. We need a new strategy."

"Guys!" The four heard Mike call out.

Mike could swear he felt his heart stop when he saw his teammates, his friends, on the ground, hurt and losing the fight _**(again, the first time being no thanks to him)**_. He ran up them, kneeling next to Emily. They couldn't even stop this guy in Havoc Mode.

"You guys okay?" Mike asked, worry etched on his face.

Desperaino answered Mike before the other Rangers could. "Hello, Greenie. Would you like to meet the same delicious defeat your friends did?"

Mike stood up and directly in front of his friends. "You're gonna regret that. I'll make you pay."

"You really think you can do that?" Desperaino taunted.

"Try me," was all Mike said. **"Samuraizer! Go, Go, Samurai!"** He morphed after drawing his Symbol and flipping it.

Emily coughed before calling out, "Go for it, Mike!"

Mike hooked up the standard Black Power Disk up to his Spin Sword and unsheathed his Sword, _**"Samurai Forest, Power Ranger Green!"**_

He recalled Ji's words from earlier: _"Look inside yourself and connect with what the forest means to you."_

The forest...it was ancient, strong, and wild. And at its core, it stood for growth, renewal, and freedom.

 _Everything Mike was._

As Mike was surrounded with a green aura, he spun the Power Disk on his Spin Sword. **"Forest Spear!"**

"Hah! Yeah right!" Desperaino guffawed. "What a lame plan!"

"Lame?" Mike asked. "My Symbol Power grows as big as whatever I dream up." _So I better dream big_ , Mike finished in his thoughts.

Desperaino threw some blasts at him with his staff. Mike just ran through them, swinging his forest spear and after the blade hit the pavement, Mike used it to raise himself to the Nighlock's level, morphing into Havoc Mode for the first time on the way.

 **"Forest Hammer!"**

"Oww!" Desperaino yelped in pain as Mike's new weapon hit him square on the head and sent him crashing to the ground, in the exact same fashion as the other Rangers earlier.

The Rangers watched in awe as a Havoc Mode-morphed Mike landed and turned his Hammer back into his Spin Sword.

Mike spun the Green Bear Disk, "I'm afraid there's been a change in the weather forecast, Nighlock. Scattered leaves and an end to your sad showers once and for all. **Spin Sword: Tree Kanji Strike!** "

A series of green colored slashes in the form of Mike's helmet kanji struck Desperaino and quickly ended his first life.

"Mike! You did it!" Emily said, as she and Kevin ran up to Mike.

"Amazing!" Kevin exclaimed. "Where did you get Symbol Power like that?"

"I always had it," Mike said, slinging an arm around both their shoulders. "I just needed some help to find it."

"Great job, Mike," Jayden said, right as there was a booming voice above them.

"You Rangers will pay!" Desperaino cried out in rage.

 **"Samuraizers!"**

 **"Lion Folding Zord!"**

 **"Dragon Folding Zord!"**

 **"Turtle Folding Zord!"**

 **"Bear Folding Zord!"**

 **"Ape Folding Zord!"**

 **"Ready! Zords Combine! Samurai Megazord, We Are United!"**

The five stood in usual formation, all in Havoc Mode. Within in the Megazord cockpit, Jayden began the rollcall, _**"Samurai Fire, Havoc Mode Red!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Water, Havoc Mode Blue!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Wind, Havoc Mode Pink!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Forest, Havoc Mode Green!"**_

 _ **"Samurai Earth, Havoc Mode Yellow!"**_

 _ **"Rangers Together–"**_ Mike called.

 _ **"Samurai Forever!"**_ The five finished together.

Desperaino groaned. "You Rangers are really starting to get on my nerves!" He opened his umbrella and flew up into the air. "At least, I know you guys don't have a Megazord that can fly! Now, feel the delicious despair of defeat!" More blasts were shot at them.

The Rangers barely managed to unsheathe their Swords before they were hit by his blasts without mercy. The Rangers, and ultimately the Megazord, fell to their knees.

"We can't just let him take shots from above us," Jayden said.

"We need to find some way to destroy that umbrella of his," Kevin said. "It obviously is what's allowing to fly in the first place."

"Good plan, Kev," Mia said. "But how?"

"The Samurai Battlewing," Emily pointed out, holding up the Tiger Disk. "I know it's risky to try it now without us testing it out first, but it could be what gives us the edge here."

"Emily's right," Jayden admitted. "Kevin, Mia, let's go."

"Right," Kevin said, as Emily handed Jayden the Tiger Disk. Kevin hooked the Swordfish Disk to his Spin Sword, as Jayden did the same with the Tiger Disk.

But Mia nudged Mike and held up the Beetle Disk. "Here."

"W-Wait, what?" Mike asked. "But Ji gave it to you."

"Beetle's chosen both of us," Mia revealed, a gentle smile on under her helmet. "Go for it."

"Right, I won't let you down, Mia," Mike said, taking the Beetle Disk from her and hooking it up to his Spin Sword.

"Let's do it," Jayden ordered. "Emily, you and Mia hold down the fort, okay?"

"Right," Emily said. "Good luck, you guys."

"Thanks. _**Summon Tiger Zord!**_ "

 _ **"Summon Swordfish Zord!"**_

 _ **"Summon Beetle Zord!"**_

Before Desperaino knew it, the three mentioned Zords were coming at him, rage and fury evident in their mechanical eyes. Meanwhile, Jayden, Kevin, and Mike all appeared in their mentioned cockpits.

"It's now or never," Jayden said, before writing the _'unity'_ kanji, which caused the three Zords to combine exactly how the Rangers hoped they would, exactly how Ji's book depicted they would.

 **"Samurai Battlewing! We Are United!"**

Inside the Battlewing cockpit, the stands were directly in front of them and the Swords were inserted and used like joysticks.

Desperaino was immediately taken back. "What? They turned into a bird?"

Inside the Samurai Megazord cockpit, the two girls cheered. "Yes! They did it!" Emily said.

"They sure did," Mia said. "Now, we know it's possible."

"Very possible," Emily followed up.

The Nighlock quickly steeled up as the Battlewing began to pursue him. "You'd be wise to fly away, bird brains. You can't weather this storm!" He shot more blasts at them, but Battlewing easily dodged them, having free movement in the air just like their opponent.

Once Desperaino realized this, he flew at the Rangers himself.

"Punch it!" Jayden ordered, the Battlewing flying at the Nighlock and using one of its wings to scratch the Nighlock in the stomach as it flew by.

As the Nighlock cried in pain, Mike turned back, saying, "That's right, Nighlock. A new storm's rolling in, and it's gonna blow you away."

"You fools are becoming tiresome! I am undefeated in the air, and that's not going to change today!"

But since Desperaino was flying backwards, trying to hit the Battlewing _**(one hit did get them, but it just bounced off of them)**_ , he flew directly into a building, hitting him square in the back and catching him off guard.

 **"Vortex Spin!"** Jayden ordered, and while the Battlewing did so, he turned to the girls in the Megazord. "Emily!"

"Roger that!" Emily called out, letting him know she knew exactly what he was thinking. "Ready, Mia?"

"Ready!"

 **"Girl Power!"**

The two arms of the Megazord resumed their usual shapes _**(the circle and the triangle)**_ and released their energy in the shape of their respective kanjis, both of which hit the Nighlock square in the chest.

 **"Strike!"** The Battlewing charged up their own energy blast, which effectively cut off the Nighlock's umbrella.

Now Desperaino was flying out of control. "This is despair?! This isn't delightful at all!"

"One final attack should do the job," Jayden told the other two Rangers with him.

"Right!"

"Roger that, Jay!"

The Battlewing released some energy, which took the form of the three main Power Disks used for it. The three _'Disks'_ flew in between them and the Nighlock.

 **"Katana Power: Charging Strike!"**

The Battlewing used the three energy _'Disks'_ as a guide rail for their final attack, a simple super-speed charge, which ultimately got rid of Desperaino once and for all.

The two girls cheered again in victory.

"Yes!"

"Very possible and very effective," Emily corrected. Mia nodded.

"Samurai Rangers, Victory is Ours!" Jayden said, as the Battlewing reunited with the Megazord.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

As soon as Mike stepped foot on the property, he was immediately greeted by a tight hug from Antonio.

"I was so worried, _mi amigo_!"

Mike chuckled before giving his Latino friend a gentle pat on the back, while his other hand stayed behind his back. "I'm okay, Antonio. I'm okay, and I'm not going anywhere."

"Good, because if you actually did leave, I would have…" And Antonio's English words were lost in a long line of Spanish words.

While the others were confused, not understanding a word he was saying, Jayden only smiled and shook his head.

"Antonio!" He called, not losing the smile. When his childhood friend did so and looked at him, Jayden merely said, "Calm down and speak English."

Antonio immediately covered his mouth. "Oh! Sorry."

Ji then came out. "Welcome back, Rangers. Mike, that was an excellent performance you gave."

"Thanks, Ji," Mike said. "Also, I, uh, have something for you."

Ji looked at Jayden in confusion, who told him, "Hear him out."

Mike pulled out, from behind his back, a new potted bamboo plant. "For you."

"Me?" Ji asked, as he took it from Mike's hands. "Whatever for?"

"My thank you for teaching me about Symbol Power," Mike replied. "Without it, I wouldn't have won against that Nighlock or won the Beetle Zord's favor."

"Mike, Mia, the Beetle Zord chose you two because of your loyalty to your families and to this team, and Mike, you unlocked Havoc Mode for the exact same reason," Ji revealed. "Not because of your Symbol Power."

Mike smiled before turning to Mia. "Way to go, Mia."

"You too, Mike," Mia replied as the two shared a fist bump.

Emily snuck a glance at Jayden, which he was obviously expecting, as he turned his head towards her at the exact same time. The two shared a smile, knowing that all was well now.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _ **Original Shinkenger Episode: Act 10**_

 _ **Original PRS Episode: Forest for the Trees**_

 **Note: Mike's Havoc Mode rollcall (I'm imagining) is similar to Kyoryu Gray's (II; the one in Kyoryuger VS. ToGger). Also, there was a Star Trek (the newer version) reference in this chapter. If anyone correctly tells me what it was, I'll give you a free cake of your choice.**

A/N: Do review, please. **If you guys have any ideas you want me to consider adding, please PM me.** A preview for the next chapter:

 _ **Season 1, Episode 11:**_ _"Test of the Leader"_

 _"Emily finally reaches her stress limit for her visions, leading them to a secret that Xandred just so happens to find out at the same time."_

 **Here are some stories that are currently running around in my mind-brain. Let me know which ones you guys find interesting and would like to read the most:**

 **Mother Mae-Eye:** _Emily could have sworn that Jii was the only adult in the Shiba House. Apparently, she was wrong. Or is she?_

 **Redemption:** _When she said, 'I'm sorry I let the team down,' what she was really saying was 'I'm sorry for being so weak.' Deeper insight of Emily's apology in Origins, Part 2._

 **The Angel with the Shotgun:** _Serena was hurting inside. The other Rangers could see that, and the root of Serena's problems is her baby sister, Emily, who has been diagnosed with deadly illness. Day after day, Serena is holding on by a single strand of hope that her sister is still alive. Emily is the driving point to everything she does, the reason she lives. Is her hope meaningless? Is there more to all of this than they first thought? AU_

 **Just Believe:** _She knew something was wrong with her, but she never expected that she would catch Serena's illness for herself. Now, she's broken. The others are counting on her and Jii expects her to be alive and well enough to fight, but she just can't bring herself to tell them that she won't be alive for very long._

 **Lean on Me:** _'What about you, Jayden? What's your family like?' He thinks of his father, Jonathon, as he dies sealing Master Xandred away. He thinks of his mother, Alison, as she finally loses her battle against cancer. He thinks of his sister, Lauren, as she is taken away from him, possibly never to be seen again. 'Don't even get me started, Mike.' Because friends are only temporary, but family is forever._

 **Let It Go:** _He realized it when it was too late. She was already in another guy's arms. Jayden loved Emily. Post-Finale_

 **In the Dead of Night:** _Jayden starts noticing some changes in Emily, who he realizes is a vampire, and she's attracted to his blood. AU_

 **Don't Touch That Dial:** _Thanks to his addiction to TV, Mike leads the hunt for a Nighlock inside the TVs themselves._

 **The Quest:** _After losing the fight with the mutated Arachnitor, Jayden seeks training from the "True Master" to boost his skills up, despite Emily's protests not to._

 **Switched:** _The seven Samurai Rangers find themselves in a pickle when their elements are switched around, but it proves to be a very effective bonding experience._


	11. 11: Test of the Leader

A/N: I hereby present to you all my own version (yes, another one) of Power Rangers: Samurai. It does have a much darker theme to it than Saban's version (which I do not hate, as you can obviously tell by my other PR stories). There were some flaws, yes, and I'm still going to use some terms you are familiar with.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Power Rangers Samurai or Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. I just own most of the plot and the characters and things you don't recognize from the original version.

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _"Emily finally reaches her stress limit for her visions, leading them to a secret that Xandred just so happens to find out at the same time."_

 **Better Together**

 _ **Power Rangers: Samurai REDO**_

 **Season 1, Episode 11:** _Test of the Leader_

 **Emily's Room, Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

 _ **June 9, 2014**_

 _Misty the Water Guardian ran through the forest in order to get away from the three wolves chasing after her. She had come here, to this forest, in order to find a treasure her older sister, Sirena, had buried here ten years earlier. Not just any treasure._

 _A very powerful treasure that had the potential to destroy or save the universe, depending on who got it first._

 _And it was the Water Guardian's duty to protect this treasure no matter what. Sirena hid it here somewhere before the wolves mauled her to death, but she left no clues as to where she hid it._

 _Hence why Misty was here._

 _But she had run into three very hungry and very angry wolves, the very same ones who had killed her sister. She could feel it._

 _But she had no weapons, no defensive capabilities, no special powers besides her special empathic connection with the water, which was nowhere in sight._

 _So she did the only thing she could: she ran._

 _Her heart was beating with fear as she weaved in and out of the trees, low branches giving her scratches as her lungs demanded a repreive, as her legs ached with throbbing pain, due to running for so long._

 _She didn't see the tiny rock in the dirt road until it made her trip and fall flat on her face._

 _Feeling a nasty bruise on her knee and her ankle hurting, Misty heard the wolves' snarls come closer and closer, and her mind immediately went to her sister._

 _If she fell here, just like Sirena, she'd be letting her sister down. Though gone from this world, Sirena was counting on her. The whole world was counting her. She couldn't fall here._

 _She wouldn't._

 _So Misty ignored the pain and got back on her feet. But she didn't run, because she could hear a soft flute sound gradually getting louder. Her legs trembling from exhaustion, her breathing deep and hard, her hands trembling with adrenaline, Misty glanced around, trying to find the source of this flute sound._

 _Misty's eyes them came across a hollow tree that had a soft glow within it. She slowly walked towards the tree, hearing the flute sound grow louder._

 _Yes! She found it! She found her sister's treasure!_

 _The trio of wolves snarling at her from a distance that was getting shorter and closer snapped her out of her victorious reverie._

 _The enemy was closing in. Fast._

 _So Misty did the only thing she could think of: she climbed inside and hid herself within the hollow part of the tree._

 _Holding her breath, she heard the wolves in the same area, right on top of her. Through the narrow opening, she saw two of the wolves slowly slink by. As she waited for the third one to walk by, her heart pounding less and less with each passing moment._

 _Just then, the third wolf suddenly jumped out at her._

 _Misty screamed aloud, unaware that someone else from another reality was screaming for the exact same reason._

Emily screamed aloud, fully aware of what that girl from her dream was screaming about ( _ **as she herself was screaming from the exact same thing)**_.

Her heart was pounding a mile a minute, her breathing was hard and deep, her body was shaking like a leaf, and she was covered in a cold sweat.

Pardon her language, but...what the _**hell**_ was that?!

Her forest house dreams were back with a freakin' vengeance. She had never had one that scared her this much before, not even the one she had the night before her dad's death.

This one has shaken her to her very core _**(and the fact that she found this girl in her dream very familiar only made it weirder)**_.

Something within her told her that this was her punishment for trying to ignore the visions before...

Emily heard a pairs of frantic footsteps rush towards her room, but she was hardly paying attention to that. She didn't even look up when she heard her bedroom door open.

"Emily, are you okay?" she heard Antonio ask.

"I'm fine." Emily's answer was short and absolute, despite the trembling in her voice and the tightening in the back of her throat _**(that was made obvious when she spoke)**_ telling Antonio _**(and whoever was with him)**_ otherwise.

"You're not fine, Em," she heard Mike speak up.

Emily glanced from her gaze at her yellow fleece blanket up to her bedroom door, and she immediately curled up into a tight ball, her knees to her chest, when she noticed and realized that she had woken everybody up. She glanced back at the clock on her bedside table, which read 4:30 AM, but it only made her feel even guiltier.

"I'm fine," she repeated, her emotion in her voice more obvious that time. _**(She didn't mean to wake up the entire Shiba House, early in the morning no less.)**_

"Mike's right. You're not okay," Kevin swiftly, calmly cut in. "You were screaming like someone was attacking you."

"I'm fine," Emily repeated, wincing at how much emotion her throat was holding back.

Mia had walked over to her and sit next to her on the side of her bed. Placing a gentle hand on Emily's clammy shoulder, "If you want to talk about it–"

"–No, I don't want to talk about it," Emily replied, unable to stop the tears from welling up in her eyes, before repeating once again, "I'm fine."

"Emily," Ji calmly spoke up, _**(surprisingly)**_ easing Emily's tension, "why don't you go on to the kitchen and I'll make you some tea? The rest of you go back to bed."

Emily gratefully nodded _**(as he gave her to perfect excuse to leave the room and escape everyone's gazes)**_ and got up out of bed. She refused to meet anyone's eyes as she escaped the confines of her room and found freedom on the fresh air-filled walls of the kitchen.

Jayden had not spoken a single word during that whole exchange, but he was there, and Emily had found his gaze very familiar.

 _Sympathy..._

He had given the same gaze to her when they first met.

Emily didn't know how she felt about that.

Antonio gazed after her, feeling the others' obvious worry and blatant confusion at Emily and what just happened.

He felt a little guilty. After all, they had no single clue as to what was going on, while he did.

But he did promise Emily he wouldn't tell them.

But this one was bad. Worse than any other vision she's had before. He could tell.

If this wasn't a sign to tell the others, Antonio wasn't sure what else it was.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Kitchen, Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

It was now 7:45 AM, Ji noted as he glanced up at the clock on the kitchen wall. Which meant the others would be getting up any minute now if they had actually gone back to sleep after what happened with Emily earlier that morning.

"I have to start on breakfast now," Ji told Emily as the girl took another sip of her tea. "The others will be up any minute."

"They're already awake," Emily said, nonchalantly.

Ji's head immediately turned to the kitchen doorframe and immediately understood Emily's vocal tone while she said that.

"What on earth are you five doing out of bed?!" Ji demanded to the five teens who were peering their heads from the kitchen doorway. "You're supposed to be sleeping, not eavesdropping!"

"We're sorry," Mia said, as the five stood up and slowly filed into the kitchen. "We were worried about Emily, and so we couldn't sleep."

"That's very noble of you," Ji replied, his voice less loud and more gentle. "But I don't believe eavesdropping is the right way to get answers." Ji paused, taking in a deep breath before saying, "Now, I have to fix breakfast for you rambunctious, mischievous kids. The right way to get answers is to _ask_." Ji motioned towards Emily, who was still sipping her tea.

The room was quiet as Emily waited for someone to 'ask' her about her nightmare earlier this morning.

Antonio, surprisingly, was the one who stepped forward. "Em, I think you should go back to the house."

"NO!" Emily's answer was immediate. Antonio was the only one who she told all of this to, but that didn't mean she was going to take his advice.

And it was now that all hell seemed to break loose.

"Wait–!" Kevin held up his hands in a 'stop' motion. "House? What house?"

"Did we miss a step?" Mike asked.

"Don't worry about it," Again, Emily's answer was immediate.

"Go ahead and worry," but Antonio's was just as quick. "Emily's being a little stubborn about this."

"Can you blame me?!" Emily shot back. This was her secret, right?! Then, why was Antonio making this choice for her?!

Antonio knew he was being rather unfair, but he had his reasons. These visions of Emily's were just getting worse. If she continued ignoring them like she's always done, who knows what they would do to her?

How worse would they become?

Today, it was just a nightmare. Tomorrow, it could be something a lot worse.

 _Like severe brain damage..._

She had to check these visions out.

"Stop," Jayden's voice cut the through the tense atmosphere like a knife. Emily inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. "Please, somebody explain what's going on. I don't care who."

There was a intense moment of silence where Antonio and Emily glanced at each other in the eyes. Emily reluctantly nodded, giving her friend permission to disclose all of the details of Emily's secret.

Antonio glanced back at Jayden, who merely raised his eyebrow as an 'I'm waiting' gesture. He and the other three wanted answers. They deserved answers.

"Sorry, Em," Antonio finally spoke, softly, genuinely apologetic. "I really am. You know the day Negatron attacked us?" The other Rangers nodded, remembering that day perfectly.

 _How could they forget? That was the day Emily received her Havoc Mode._

"Well, after Emily ran out, I ran out after her," Antonio continued. "And while we were talking, she…asked me if I could keep a secret. I told her I could, but that was obviously a little white lie." He sounded and felt supremely guilty, Emily noted. "But, anyways, she told me that she has these dreams that are…not normal."

"What?" Kevin was the first to speak up. "That's not possible."

"Shut it," Emily's voice was hard and emotional, and immediately made the other Rangers quiet down. She didn't look at them, but not out of fear alone.

 _Fear and sorrow._

"She told me that some of her dreams predict the future, some explain what really happened in the past, and some don't make sense at all," Antonio continued, not taking his eyes off of Emily. "And lately, she's been having these kinds of dreams about this house in the forest."

"Keller Forest," Emily corrected, and Jayden's mind immediately wandered to a house he remembered his sister talking about once.

 _No...it couldn't be_ _ **that house**_ _, could it?_

Yeah, on the outside, it all seemed a little far-fetched, but this was Emily, someone he had grown to trust and care about, both a great deal.

Besides, the house in Keller Forest was obviously important to his sister _**(though, he didn't know why)**_. Maybe this was his chance to find out what really happened to her.

But a part of him felt sad and a little jealous that Emily told _Antonio_ about this and not _him_.

The room was quiet as Jayden kneeled in front of Emily and gently asked her, "Why didn't you tell us about this sooner?"

"Because no one ever believes me," Emily's answer was immediate and confident, like she knew this for a fact. "Everyone I've ever told has told me that I was crazy and that it's _'just my imagination'_."

"I see...You've also gone to this house before," Jayden replied, "but you haven't gone back for a while, at least that's the way you guys are making it sound, so please, correct me if I'm wrong. Why not?"

"Because I'm always scared by and chased away by three wolves every time I get close," Emily's eyes still won't look directly at his. They're still glued to the ground.

"Em," Antonio softly spoke up, "your visions are obviously getting worse. I know the house scares you, but if any one of those visions of yours was an indication to visit that house for answers, it was this one."

Emily refused to answer, the room becoming unbearably quiet.

"What if we come with you this time?" Mike suggested.

Emily finally looked up at them, obviously considering Mike's solution.

She then glanced at Jayden for help, who merely replied, "Six heads are better than one, Em."

Meaning, he had no issue with Mike's solution to all of this.

And if Jayden was confident about it, then...Emily guessed she could give it a try.

"...O-Okay..."

The others gently smiled at her with sympathy and kindness as Jayden held out a hand to help her back on her feet.

Emily took it with a fake smile wavering on the brink of a scared frown.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

"ARE YOU CALLING ME WEAK?!"

Everyone in the Sanzu River covered their ears and cowered in fear as Xandred's temper roared.

"Not at all, Master," Octoroo replied, he and Dayu being the only ones who didn't back down, despite the fact that Xandred had just drawn his sword on them. "I'm just stating facts. Deker definitely knows more than he's letting on."

"Do you really think I'm going to listen to Deker?! He's a traitor! Traitors and humans have no place here! You know that!" Xandred roared.

"Of course I do, Master, but please hear me out," Octoroo pleaded. "Deker knows more information about the Seal than we do. Somehow, he knows that the Seal has six parts, instead of one like we've been assuming this whole time. He also knows that the Seal has weakened you to the point where you take medicine to keep the Seal from taking full effect. Up until now, we've been assuming that you take your medicine because your own anger gives you those headaches. Think about it, Master. Deker knows more than he's letting on," he repeated.

"So, he's not calling me weak!" Xandred roared. "He's calling me STUPID!"

"Or he's just relaying information that he's found out since he got kicked out of the Sanzu River," Dayu offered.

"No, he's calling me an IDIOT! WELL, HE'S NOT GETTING AWAY WITH IT!"

Octoroo and Dayu shared a wary glance before glancing out of the ship's window, where rock formations on the shore were turning into Marauders, both giant and regular sized, all of them responding to their Master's anger.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Keller Forest, Panorama City, California**

Kevin checked his watch as Emily led them through the forest to this house she's been dreaming about.

 _ **8:15 AM**_

They'd been up for about four hours now. To be honest, Kevin didn't really believe that Emily's dreams could predict the future or explain the past, or whatever else they could do. _**(Seriously, did this house even exist?)**_

But if it made Emily feel better, he would play along.

That thought immediately left his mind as soon as Emily stopped the group and directed their attention to the building in front of them.

"We're here..." Emily spoke up, very hesitant. _**(What if it really was just her imagination?)**_

Kevin was immediately left speechless. _**(Because Emily was right.)**_

Because there stood in front of them an old, abandoned house, with a rusty door and lock, cracked and broken windows, and the entire left side of the house was burned black as if a fire had started and occurred there...

Emily was about to speak up and ask in a small voice if the others saw the house too, but Mike spoke up first, "Don't worry, Em. You're not crazy. We see it too."

He and Mia immediately walked up the porch steps to the front door. Mike jiggled the rusty doorknob.

"And the door is locked," Mike muttered.

Emily nodded, "Yeah." She walked up to the front porch, but she went for the window next to the door instead. Lifting up the window pane, she continued, "But the window is not."

Emily was feeling a little better knowing that the others could see the house too. As she climbed into the house through the window, her mind went to a conversation she had with the Ape Zord:

 _ **"Do you think I should go back to the forest house? I mean, if it really is all just my imagination, then what's the point?"**_

 _ **"The house is real," Ape informed her. "I found you there, remember? I could see everything you could."**_

 _ **"Yeah, but you're a Zord. You have special sight, don't you?" Emily's head and heart were both filled to the brim with doubt.**_

 _ **Ape couldn't argue with that, so she replied, "Maybe the house and the wolves are invisible to others and only we can see them."**_

Ape was right: the house was very real, as proven by the others climbing in through the window after her.

Not to mention, the wolves had showed up _**(right in the open)**_ , but they did not attack them. Emily thought back to how Jayden could not see the wolves when they first met.

 _Maybe she wasn't crazy after all._

"I can see why you didn't want to come back here, Em," Antonio gently spoke up. "This place is creepy."

"If by creepy, you mean, the shadows in this place are a little too jumpy," Mike replied, "then, yeah, I agree with you."

Now that Emily didn't have immense fear like she did the previous two times she came here, she could concentrate on what the house actually looked like inside.

The inside of the house almost perfectly mirrored the outside. The entire left side of the house was burned black, with the kitchen on the right side _**(so that left the mystery of how the fire started of it didn't start in the kitchen)**_. There was dust all over the place and cobwebs littered the corners. Not to mention, Mike was right. The shadows in this house were 'jumpy', meaning at times, there were too much shadows, and others, there were too few.

Something strange was going on in this house.

Jayden's foot accidentally stepped on what sounded like broken glass. His and the others' heads immediately went down to what he had stepped on.

It was a broken picture frame.

Jayden carefully picked it up as the others gathered around him to read the caption of the photo within the frame, which read: _**"Happy Holidays from the Martinez's!"**_

The family shown was a family of four, all Hispanic _**(like Mike)**_.

"Who are the Martinez's?" Mike asked.

"You mean you don't know them, Mike?" Kevin asked. "I thought you would have some idea. You seem to know everyone in this city."

Mike simply shook his head and said, "Sorry."

Emily, meanwhile, followed this powerful urge that told her to go upstairs.

Mia saw her and immediately asked the others, "Uh, guys? Where is Emily going?"

The four guys turned to see what Emily was doing. Jayden softly told Mia, "Keep an eye on her, will you? There's a reason this house is like this."

Mia nodded and immediately ran up the stairs after the younger girl.

Which meant that Jayden didn't feel comfortable enough to let any one of them walk around this house by themselves, and Mia agreed with him. Something strange happened here to make this house like this: abandoned and 'jumpy', to use Mike's words.

Mia caught up with Emily in no time, considering the latter wasn't walking very fast. The former slowed down once she caught up with Emily. "Hey, Em. What's so special about up here?" Mia asked.

"I don't know," Emily muttered, "but something tells me we're about to find out."

The more she thought about it, the more Mia suspected that Emily had special psychic abilities. What kind, Mia had no clue, but Emily had been dreaming about this house, for God knows how long, for a specific reason _**(despite no one knowing what that reason was)**_.

Turns out the upstairs was where the bedrooms were, and if Mia knew anything about bedrooms, it was that how your bedroom looked determined who you really were as a person. The downstairs didn't mean anything really. The upstairs here was the real jackpot.

Mia turned to face Emily, and both girls immediately knew that the other was thinking the same thing as them.

"Well, there's five bedrooms here. How should we tackle this?" Mia asked.

"Should we…split up?" Emily quietly suggested.

"Jayden doesn't think that's a good idea," Mia replied, "hence why I'm here with you and not just you by yourself."

"True," Emily admitted. Jayden did have a point there. After all, Emily did feel a lot better knowing that all six of them were experiencing the same things. "Then, let's tackle one bedroom at a time."

"Fair enough," Mia agreed. "Which one first?"

"Your choice?" Emily suggested.

"You're the one who's been dreaming about this house, not me," Mia also brought up a good point. "Follow your instincts, not mine."

"Good point," Emily paused, before walking towards the bedroom with an aqua-colored raindrop painted on the white-painted door _**(even though the paint was chipping away)**_. "This one," Emily said, her hand resting on the rusty doorknob.

"Alright, let's go in," Mia added, noting the rusty door hinges, "if we can."

After Mia leaned a good majority of her weight on the door, it finally budged and slowly swung open.

"After you," Mia offered, but she soon regretted it.

As soon as Emily stepped foot inside the room, the familiar sensation of being transported out of this reality and into another swept over her. Feeling extremely dizzy and disoriented, she could barely comprehend Mia catching her and placing her against the wall before she could collapse to the ground. She could barely comprehend Mia called out to the guys downstairs before she let her 'dream' overtake her.

 _Misty managed to cover her mouth when she realized that the flute sound was throwing off the wolves' senses of sight, smell, and sound._

 _She kept breathing deeply as the wolf continued to use its faulty senses to try and see if Misty really was there. It felt like an eternity before the wolf finally slunk away, the flute sound continuing to protect Misty._

 _That sounded like her sister's flute, Misty realized, as her pounding heart eventually came to a calm beat. It was like her sister was protecting her even in the afterlife._

 _Taking great care not to bump her bruised knee or bother her twisted ankle, Misty twisted her body so that she could carefully, comfortably dig in the leaves beneath her. Eventually she came across a small wooden chest._

 _Misty opened the chest, which inside held a bright light, it seemed._

 _So that's what really happened to her sister, Sirena…_

Slowly, bit by bit, Emily began to come to her senses, realizing that her name was not Misty, but Emily, and she was not the Water Guardian, but the Yellow Samurai Ranger.

She opened her eyes to a blurry sight of Mia staring at her worriedly, her heart pounding a mile a minute.

She heard heavy footsteps rush into the room and Mia hold out her hand towards the door. "Hold it," Emily heard Mia say, and it then occurred to her that Mia was talking to the four guys that were just downstairs _**(but had come upstairs when Mia yelled for them)**_. Mia's blurry face turned back to Emily, as the former asked, "You okay?"

Emily leaned her head back against the wall behind, waiting for her heart to stop pounding so hard and her cold sweat to stop.

"Em?" She heard Jayden's voice coming closer.

Emily swallowed the lump in her throat before answering, "I'm fine." Jayden offered a hand of sturdy support and Emily gratefully took it.

"What did you see this time?" Kevin asked.

"It was a continuation of last night's dream," Emily muttered out, completely honest this time. "It felt like something, or rather _someone_ , was trying to lead me to a tree..."

"Like that one?" Mike pointed at a poster on the wall near the door, a poster of a tree.

Emily immediately paused as soon as she laid eyes on the poster's tree. " _Exactly_ like that one." Emily quickly rushed over to the poster and pulled it down, revealing a hole in the wall. But the big surprise was the thing hidden inside the hole in the wall.

"W-Wha…?" From within the hole, Emily reached in and pulled out a familiar-looking doll, one that looked exactly like the girl she was portraying in her dreams. She turned around the face the others, not taking her eyes off the doll in her hands. "M-Misty?"

"Who?" Emily assumed it was safe to say that she wasn't the only one who was confused.

"Misty the Elf, or the Water Guardian," Emily continued to explain why she found this doll _**(and essentially the girl in her dreams so familiar)**_ , "Serena gave her to me when I turned seven, and I gave it to her when she moved here, to Panorama City."

"Another mystery to solve," Kevin spoke up.

However, Antonio turned to face Jayden, his facial expression saying it all. Antonio leaned towards his friend's ear and whispered, "We can't hide it anymore. We have to tell her."

Jayden quietly whispered back, "I know."

All thoughts were interrupted by Jayden's Samuraizer going off. Jayden immediately picked up, "Yes, Ji? Okay, we'll be right there." He hung up and turned to his team, "Marauders at City Square. Let's go."

Emily turned to Antonio and reluctantly handed him Misty. "Take good care of her, okay?"

"I will, Em, I promise," Antonio replied as the other five ran off to face the Marauders that had shown up.

This was it.

The truth was about to be revealed...

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **City Square, Panorama City, California**

 _Bravery and heroism..._

That's what Spike Skullovitch was taught about being a Power Ranger. So, without thinking, he rushed in and saved a little girl from being bullied by those fish-faced monsters, but at the cost of his own safety.

So as his Uncle Bulk swiftly carried the little girl to safety, the monsters slowly surrounded Spike from all sides. Unable to move, Spike closed his eyes and waited for his end.

"Spike!" He heard his uncle call.

"Back off!" came an unfamiliar voice.

Spike immediately opened his eyes to see the Pink Samurai Ranger as she flipped over one of the monsters and began to strike down the entire group without stopping or getting tired. Spike watched as she struck down one, sent a kick towards a second, and struck down a third with her sword within three seconds flat.

Spike didn't notice that all the monsters around him were gone until she knelt next to him. "Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah..." Spike felt butterflies in his stomach, love butterflies.

"Good, you've got to get out of here. Now," the Pink Ranger continued.

"Right now?" Spike asked. He didn't want to leave yet. He just met her.

Meanwhile, Angela Cruz tried to stop her shaking wrist long enough to unlock her cafe door in order to let people in, to keep them safe from the monsters all around them. She didn't notice all the monsters around her _**(and the small group she was trying to save)**_ suddenly disappear until a gloved hand gently placed itself upon hers.

"Easy now," the Yellow Ranger calmly spoke to her. "It's gonna be okay."

And with the Yellow Ranger's guidance _**(while she kicked down another monster)**_ , Angela was finally able to insert the key and turn it, opening the cafe door. Angela let the other civilians nearby go in first before her.

Before she did, she turned to the Ranger who had helped her, "Thank you, Miss...uh..."

"Samurai Yellow," the Ranger replied. "Now, go inside and stay there until the coast is clear, okay?"

Angela nodded, and the Yellow Ranger took that as her cue to run towards her pink-colored teammate, who was guarding a guy who had apparently fallen.

Meanwhile, Bulk dropped down next to his nephew, and he took a quick glance at who had saved him.

"You!" Bulk exclaimed. "You're a Power Ranger!"

"And you're both in danger!" the Pink Ranger replied as she shifted Spike until he was sitting up in his uncle's arms. "Please, get to safety."

As the Pink Ranger rushed off to fight the enemy and save more civilians, Spike tried to follow her but was swiftly held back by his uncle.

"She's right, Spike," Bulk said. "C'mon, we'd better get going."

And Bulk watched as Spike blew the Pink Ranger a kiss before letting himself be led away by Bulk.

As Emily and Mia both fought the Marauders harder than ever before, Emily asked, to nobody in particular, "Man, what's taking the guys so long?! Summoning the Battlewing should take no time at all!"

"I don't know!" Mia called back. "I hope they didn't run into some kind of problem!"

"Nope, no problem at all," Mike called back, in the Beetle Zord cockpit, with Jayden in the Tiger Zord cockpit and Kevin in the Swordfish Zord cockpit.

"Sorry, we're late, ladies," Kevin said. "Jayden, we've got Giant Marauders dead ahead!"

"I see 'em," Jayden replied as he pulled out his Samuraizer, writing the 'unity' kanji. "Get ready. **Zords Combine!** "

 **"Samurai Battlewing! We Are United!"**

The Giant Marauders prepared themselves once they saw the Battlewing flying towards them.

"Punch it!" Jayden commanded.

Soon, all the Giant Marauders were gone with a simple Super Speed attack with the Battlewing.

Mike and Kevin cheered as Jayden steered them upwards. "Now's not the time to celebrate," Jayden swiftly cut in. "The girls are still fighting down below."

Down below, Emily and Mia were currently being overly crowded with all the Marauders that had appeared.

Emily struck down two of them at once before running over to cover Mia's back. "Man, these creeps never get tired!"

As Marauders surrounded them on all sides, Mia told Emily, "Yeah, this isn't looking good."

Emily tried her hardest not to let the fact that she was experiencing that familiar out-of-her-reality-and-into-another sensation show through her helmet. Emily could feel that familiar feeling that they should prepare for the absolute worst very, very soon.

Just then, Jayden struck down one Marauder in order to allow him, Kevin, and Mike room to join the girls.

"Hope we're not too late," Kevin said, as the five Rangers stood in a circle, with their backs all to each others'.

"Not at all, you're just in time," Mia replied.

"Wow, there's a whole lot of ugly here," Mike spoke up.

Jayden, however, could see right through Emily's mask _**(literally and figuratively)**_ , "What are you seeing now, Em?"

"I don't know," Emily immediately replied, "I just feel like something bad is about to happen."

"Stay strong, Em," Jayden said, hooking up his Red Lion Disk to the hilt of his Spin Sword. "That's why we're a team. **Spin Sword: Blazing Fury!** "

The others quickly, happily complied with Jayden's suggestion.

 **"Spin Sword: Dragon Splash!"**

 **"Spin Sword: Airwave Strike!"**

 **"Spin Sword: Forest Vortex!"**

 **"Spin Sword: Seismic Quake!"**

And just like that, all the Marauders were gone, but the feeling Emily was having did not go away.

And Emily was right, because from the gaps that led to the Sanzu River, more Marauders appeared.

"Wait, what?!" Mike exclaimed, as Kevin and Mia both sighed in annoyance.

There was usually only one batch. One batch of Marauders and that was it.

 _But this? This was just insane._

"They're like roaches," Mia complained.

"Then, we have to be the exterminators," Kevin followed up.

And within one split second, the Rangers were engaged in battle with Marauders a second time.

Jayden paused after striking one down, suddenly hearing _**"Red Ranger...Red Ranger...Red Ranger..."**_ being chanted over and over again.

The Marauders were all blinking red before returning to normal, but they were ambling toward Jayden now.

"Jayden, look out!" Emily shouted, as apparently she was the first to notice this _**(so this was the bad thing that was happening)**_. "The Marauders are after you!"

But why?

Mike tried to stop one, but this certain Marauder downed the Green Ranger with a pretty strong right hook. Mia immediately ran to him to check on him.

"You okay, Mike?"

"Never better," he answered, pure sarcasm staining his voice. "That Marauder is going to pay!"

 _ **"Red Ranger, you're in danger..."**_ the voice continued.

"Trust me, he will," Jayden was the one who replied, who chopped down a Marauder near Kevin like it was nothing. "There's been a certain Symbol Power Combination I've always wanted to try. I guess now's the time to do so." He glanced over at Emily. "Sorry, Em, but I need to borrow this."

"Hey!" Emily cried out as Jayden took way her Spin Sword straight from her hand.

Mia let out a small yell of fright as a Marauder closed in on Emily, but the former didn't need to worry as Emily quickly used her leg to swipe the Marauder off its feet and used her hand against its chest to slam it into the ground.

Emily heard the other three breathe a sigh of relief, and she explained, "Believe it or not, this isn't the worse situation I've been in! Try having a horse stomp on your back!"

"Everybody, duck!" Jayden suddenly yelled. They all immediately complied as Jayden swung both Swords around, **"Spin Sword: Blazing Storm!"** And with that, all of the Marauders were destroyed in a storm of fire and lightning. Jayden handed Emily back her sword. "Thanks, Em. That oughta do the trick."

"No problem. Wow..." She couldn't help but be in awe. Jayden had managed to take down that many Marauders with one go.

She wasn't sure if Jayden chuckled at this, and at this point, she didn't care. She was focused solely on an evil voice saying, _**"You may think you're protecting your team, Red Ranger...but you have only just sealed their fates..."**_

It was then that the voice stopped. Any of the other Marauders nearby retreated back to the Sanzu River.

Jayden merely sheathed his sword. He walked over to a nearby crevice, de-morphing on the way. His face was solemn. Emily had a feeling that something bad would happen and she was right.

"Jayden?" Emily asked, de-morphing, her face showing genuine concern. He did not turn to face her.

The others had de-morphed as well.

"Okay, anyone care to tell me what the hell that creepy voice was?" Mike asked.

"I've never heard anything so evil," Emily softly said. "It was so full of anger and misery..."

"Who was that?" Mia summed it up.

"Jayden," Emily repeated, softly. "That was…Master Xandred…wasn't it?"

Jayden turned his head back to her slightly and nodded slowly.

"What did he mean by that last bit?" Mia asked, before quoting, " _'You may think you're protecting your team, but you have only just sealed their fates'_? This combined with the house Emily's been dreaming about? I think it's time for answers."

Jayden only replied, "Back to the Shiba House. We can't discuss that here."

But he agreed with Mia, one hundred percent.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

Octoroo breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Xandred asleep on the floor, medicine bottles all around him. They all had a long day, but Xandred's temper was his greatest weakness.

"When will the Master learn?" Octoroo asked Dayu. "His temper makes the Marauders stronger, but it also tires him out faster than anything else."

"I understand his anger," Dayu replied. "The Core Five Samurai have reassembled and every Nighlock we send their way have been eliminated without a second thought, and now history could repeat itself if they find their Gold Ranger before we can find out what that Seal is."

"More medicine..." Xandred grumbled before going back to sleep.

Immediately, yellow-colored fur balls dropped down from the ceiling, annoyingly repeating, "Medicine, medicine, medicine!"

"Pipe down, you furry warts! You're just pests!" Octoroo cried out.

"Just pests, just pests, just pests!"

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Meeting Room, Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

"I understand that you want answers, Rangers," Ji was quick to say, "but you have to understand that–!"

"Ji," Jayden swiftly cut in, a stern look on his face. "We need to tell them everything."

Ji glanced over at Antonio, who simply nodded, agreeing with Jayden.

Seeing this exchange, Mike asked, "What do you guys know that we don't? And why only you guys?"

Ji took a deep breath before beginning, "As you already know, four centuries ago, the Grand Shogun, the original Core Five plus the Light Thief, the original Gold, were only able to win against Xandred by sealing him away. But what you don't know is that the Seal actually has six parts, instead of one, like the Red Shogun had the Nighlock believe, in order to protect his team from future Nighlock attacks."

"That's why they were after Jayden," Mia connected that particular piece of the puzzle, "and why they told him that him protecting us, his team, had only placed us in more danger. But why six parts instead of one?"

"The Grand Shogun believed it would be the best way to create a balance of power among the six of them, thereby creating a fail-safe card should the Nighlock hold one of them hostage or anything similar in order to get the information on the Seal," Ji explained. "However, it is possible for only one Ranger to master all six parts. _Extremely dangerous, but very possible_."

"Someone mastered the Seal?" Mike asked. "Who was it?"

"Lauren Shiba," Jayden was the one who answered. "The Red Samurai Ranger before me, and…my older sister."

 _Something happened to Lauren,_ Emily realized, _something that was so traumatizing that Jayden couldn't bear to think about it._

"Now, moving onto the house you found in Keller Forest," Ji continued after a moment of silence _**(presumably to honor Lauren)**_. "Lauren also had a team: Blake Stone, the White Ranger, Matthew Hodges, the Purple Ranger, Daniel Martinez, the Orange Ranger, and..." Ji glanced at Jayden again, unsure if he should continue.

"And?" Mike urged them to continue.

Jayden glanced at the doll, Misty, sitting on the table, as he finished, "Serena Shields, the Aqua Ranger."

"W-What?" Emily was shocked, to say the least.

"Serena?" Kevin repeated. "As in Emily's older sister?"

Antonio was the one who confirmed this, "The very same."

"You three knew about this and didn't tell us?" Mike asked, slightly angry. "Didn't tell Emily?" he corrected.

"Shut it," Emily immediately spoke up in their defense. "This is obviously very hard for them to talk about," she quietly explained. "I mean, something very bad happened to that team in that house. I knew that way before I even left Montana. Now, let them continue."

The room was quiet for a bit after Emily's rant, and Ji was the only one who dared to break it, "Thank you, Emily. We have no idea what happened to them. Whether it was a Nighlock ambush or something else, we simply do not know. We are just as confused as you all are."

"What's the deal with that house in Keller Forest?" Kevin asked.

"Yeah, there's a reason Emily's been dreaming about it," Mia said. "The question is why."

"It was the team's old hideout, much like this one," Ji continued. "It's very possible that Emily's visions can lead us to the answers we need and very much deserve."

Emily couldn't help but look over at Jayden, who was quiet. Too quiet.

She could feel his emotions:

 _Deep sorrow, deep depression, deep anger..._

His usual calm, content emotions weren't there.

Emily felt tears well up in her eyes.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld**

"What do you mean the Rangers are still vulnerable?" Dayu asked, once she and Octoroo managed to silence the furry warts, Xandred still asleep on the floor.

"I mean that the Seal has six parts, and they're only a team of five," Octoroo repeated. "Which means they're one Ranger down."

"Which means they'll be easy to beat," Dayu said, before reminding him, "but the Zords are what gives them power."

"Oh, sweet-and-sour-est Dayu," Octoroo replied, shaking his head, "there's a reason the other Zords are taking a long time to return to the current Rangers. That female Red and her team were all brutally ambushed and defeated by three of our strongest Nighlock. If we can get one of those three to defeat the current team of Rangers in the exact same way, then we'll be on the road to victory!"

"Then, by all means," Dayu replied.

Octoroo banged his staff on one of the ship's window sills two times, and called, "Robtish! We have a job for you!"

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Training Yard, Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

Jayden tied his training belt as he walked towards the training yard. Antonio had just talked to him and convinced him to come out and, at least, train with the others if nothing else, and not lock himself in his room.

He was about to make his presence known, but the conversation the other four were having stopped him in his tracks.

"You okay, Em?" Mia asked, she and Mike sitting down on a bench, while Emily and Kevin were standing.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Emily replied. "Why?"

"Well, considering what was just revealed before lunch earlier," Mike said, "it's understandable if you want to take a break to clear your mind."

"I'm fine," Emily repeated, being honest this time. "It's just...I think this whole thing with my visions and that forest house is hitting Jayden a little too close to home."

"And you're completely unaffected by all this?" Mike asked, the other three not believing her when she said she was fine.

"Of course it's affecting me," Emily replied. "It's just...affecting Jayden a whole lot more."

"Don't worry," Mia said, "Antonio's currently talking Jayden into not locking himself in his room. He'll be fine."

"Emily, just remember," Kevin quietly spoke up, "whatever the Nighlock did to your sister, it's reason before revenge."

"I know," Emily quickly replied. "It's Jayden I'm worried about."

He couldn't take this anymore. _He was worrying his team too much._

"Don't be," Jayden finally decided to make his presence known. "I'm fine."

"And we're really supposed to believe that?" Kevin asked.

"You're supposed to trust me," Jayden retaliated, his voice hard and stern _**(unlike before when he was telling Emily not to worry about him)**_.

"And you're supposed to trust us," Mike returned the bite. "That's how a team works. We carry each others burdens and watch each others' blind sides."

Jayden had lost his temper and had used his practice sword to fiercely strike a dummy. "NO!" The other four immediately recoiled in fear. "Let's just protect the innocent like we've always done! That's all we need to do!"

Now it was Jayden's turn to back off as he winced at the volume of his voice. He hadn't realized he was shouting...

Fortunately, the Gap Sensor chose this time go off.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Parkside Trails, Spiral Forest State Park, Panorama City, California**

All five Rangers stopped in the middle of the dirt and gravel field.

"He should be around here somewhere," Emily muttered, neither one of them seeing any unusual activity.

"Hey, you, down there!" They all looked up to see the Nighlock standing on a cliff, a Nighlock that had a Scottish accent. "You five are the Samurai Rangers, correct?"

"Who's asking?" Mike asked.

"Me, Action Commander Robtish! I'm here to destroy you all, starting with the glue that holds the group together!" The Nighlock replied, before Jayden suddenly growled and stepped forward, taking a protective stance in front of his team.

"You're not touching either one of them!" Jayden yelled out, no trace of mercy or happiness anywhere in his voice.

"I take it you're the leader, then!" Robtish unsheathed his sword. "Shall we?"

Kevin and Mike were quick to grab each of Jayden's arms.

"Jayden, don't," Mike growled.

"He's right," Kevin replied. "This is exactly the type of battle you should avoid."

Emily was confused as to what Jayden's motives were. "What's going on?" She asked before finally looking at Robtish square in the eyes. She paused, unable to shake the feeling that she had just uncovered another piece of the complicated puzzle they were given to solve. "You're one of the wolves."

"Huh?"

"Sorry, 'wolves'?" Robtish asked, as the other four Rangers were confused as to what she meant.

So Emily explained, "'Wolves' as in you're one of the three responsible for what happened to Lauren and her team."

"Oh, _**those**_ 'wolves'," Robtish replied. "Why, yes, little lady. I am."

Suddenly, something within Jayden roared, like a lion, demanding retribution.

 _This guy knew what had happened to Lauren. This guy had to pay._

But he was more bothered by Kevin and Mike tightening their grips on his forearms, and Mike telling him, "Protecting the innocent comes way before revenge, Jayden. You know that."

"Mike's right," he heard Mia say. "We know you care about Lauren, and we know you want answers, but there's a much better to get them."

They were right. All four of them.

And Jayden felt the fire within him slowly quell and calm down.

Meanwhile, Emily knew that Robtish was side-eyeing Jayden, as if the Nighlock knew exactly how to push Jayden's buttons, as if he knew that Lauren and Jayden were closely related.

The other four Rangers were caught off-guard by Robtish leaping down and landing in front of the group, but even more so by Emily immediately stepping out in front of them, her Sword drawn and out in a defensive position.

"Back off," Emily's voice was hard and stern, much like Jayden's not a minute earlier.

"Heh," Robtish let out a soft laugh, "I remember those eyes. Your sister had the same ones. Y'know, the ones filled the fire of determination and the ice of fear at the same time?"

Jayden's temper began to flare again, and this time, _he had no idea why_.

All that he could process was that Robtish knew Serena and was using her to push Emily to her breaking point, and any action of harm against Emily was not allowed. Not on his watch.

"You're not touching Jayden," and Emily mentally added, _**'or any one of them.'**_

"Whoever said it was your precious leader I'm after?" Robtish asked before reminding them, "I said _'starting with the glue that holds the group together'_. Believe it or not, pumpkin, that's _you_. Just like your sister..."

Of course Serena was the heart of her team. That was a given. But Emily?

 _ **No way.**_

And that was it: Jayden's breaking point that made something in him snap. He rushed forward, letting his rage consume him.

Jayden rushed forward. "Oh, so that's how it's gonna be, huh, Red?" Robtish commented before sending a few blasts at Jayden, who simply ran through them, his urge to protect Emily and his entire team giving him the strength to withstand any damage he sustained.

Jayden pulled out his Samuraizer and morphed in mid-jump. **"Go, Go, Samurai!"**

In a flash of red, Jayden drew his Sword and attacked Robtish without a second thought.

This isn't what she wanted, Emily realized with a sickening start. This was the exact opposite of what she wanted!

"Jayden's gonna kill himself!" Emily told the others as she pulled out her Samuraizer as well. "We have to stop him!"

Emily then felt a sturdy hand on her shoulder. It was Kevin. "Then, let's do it."

 **"Samuraizers! Go, Go, Samurai!"**

Fully morphed, the other four Rangers ran forward into the fight in order to help their leader.

Well, they tried, and they would have succeeded had a horde of Marauders not gotten in their way.

No one noticed a familiar white-colored, red-skulled Nighlock watching the commotion, growling when he saw Robtish continuously swing his sword at the Red Ranger.

Jayden and Robtish clashed swords and paused to give themselves a little breather. "This is kinda fun, actually. You're good, Red," Robtish admitted. "Not nearly as good as your sister, though. She was one heck of a riot."

Of course, Lauren was better than him. She was better at everything...

"Save the compliments!" Jayden said, spinning around to avoid a hit before coming to his knees to block another one.

 _Great, just great,_ Mike thought. _If this kept up, Jayden would be toast by the time the others got there._

 _This may not have been what Emily wanted_ , Kevin thought, but it is what Robtish wanted. _That Nighlock_ _ **knew**_ _about the puzzle the Rangers uncovered just this morning. He knew how painful this was for Jayden and Emily both, and he certainly knew which of their buttons to push. That Nighlock certainly put them on the trap._

 _Emily,_ Mia thought, in the meanwhile. _Jayden's one definite berserk button was Emily. Robtish knew that Emily was the team's center and not once was he hesitant to exploit that. This Nighlock was definitely a smart one, for sure._

"Guys!" Emily called, catching the attention of the other four. **"Havoc Mode–!"** she began.

 **"Engage!"** The four all called out together. After a brief flash, each in their respective colors, the four Rangers in their Havoc Mode best. The Marauders stepped back in fear, knowing what was coming at them now.

 **"Diamond Wave Trident!"** Kevin called. Catching one Marauder's sword with the Trident's three-pronged spearhead, he then flipped the Marauder over, which landed on one of its buddies. Kevin then swung his Trident in a circular motion, **"Riptide Strike!"** And a wave of ice-cold water took all of his group out.

 **"Windstorm Arrow!"** Mia called, raising her Bow over her head. **"Flower Hurricane!"** And a shower of arrows quckly took out her group.

 **"Forest Hammer!"** Mike called before finding his footing and smacking a Marauder in the chest with the said weapon. He twirled it behind his back, before hitting at least three more Marauders. He then smashed his hammer into the ground, causing the rest of the Marauders around him to explode in a giant fireball.

Emily saw all the Marauders surrounding her, blocking every possible escape. She narrowed her eyes in determination. **"Spiral Earth Drill: Energize!"** Using her Drill to spin her around, Emily used a perfectly executed hurricane kick with both feet, and all the Marauders surrounded her were destroyed.

However, one upwards strike to the chest was enough to get Jayden on the ground. Jayden immediately got to his knees and looked up at his opponent just in time to see Robtish point his sword directly at him. "Down and you'll soon be out!"

Jayden went back down on the ground in order to avoid another of Robtish's swings and instead, Red got a hit this time.

Seeing that Robtish was off-guard, Jayden immediately got to his feet and went for the hit.

But Robtish's sword had a little mouth on its blade, and that caught Jayden's sword mid-swing.

"This fight ends for you now, Red," Robtish said before striking Jayden hard enough to disarm him. _**"Double Slash!"**_ From his ears came a shockwave, before he swung his sword three times.

The attack hit Jayden dead on, and he flew several feet into the air before landing on his back in the valley below.

Kevin watched this following scene in _**(seemingly)**_ slow motion:

Robtish jumped down and landed near Jayden _**(a little too close for Kevin's comfort)**_. "Is that all you've got, Red?! One Double Slash is all it takes to take you down?!"

Slowly, but surely, Jayden eventually got to his knees, gritting out, "Down, but not out..."

"I honestly thought you'd be tougher than that weak girl you call your older sister, but you're crawling around like a bug, and I love to crush bugs," Robtish said, without a thought to what Jayden just said. "Any last words, Red?"

The rage within Jayden flared up again. "Don't call Lauren weak!"

Lauren was the strongest person he knew, mentally, emotionally, and physically.

"I'll take that as my invitation to kill you now," Robtish said. "See ya, Red!"

This time, something inside Kevin snapped when he saw Emily rush forward without a second thought. He immediately chased after her, already knowing what she was about to do.

"Emily, no!"

 _ **"Double Slash!"**_

Jayden expected physical pain from Robtish's attack, but when he glanced up, he got emotional pain instead.

Jayden's heart leaped out of his chest when he saw Emily suddenly rush into view, Kevin following soon after, seemingly trying to stop her.

But boy did Kevin fail.

Not only was Emily hit full blast, but Kevin was hit too _**(not as much as Emily, but still enough to greatly injure him)**_.

Mike and Mia's head immediately turned to see what had just happened.

And they and Jayden could only watch as the explosion that occurred because of this made the two Rangers in front of Jayden de-morph, their Havoc-Mode-weapons-turned-Spin-Swords dropping to the ground as they both fell to their knees and face-planted into the dirt and gravel below, Emily already out cold and Kevin barely hanging on to consciousness.

Mike picked up his pace, trying with all his willpower not to get angry _**(in his mind was memories of David getting hurt on his watch, because of him)**_. Mia seemed to sense his anger and urgency, because she too was working harder than ever.

Jayden's entire body was trembling, unable to take his eyes off of his two fallen friends.

"Those fools must really care about you," he heard Robtish, the Nighlock, say. "Too bad I couldn't care less. If they want to throw their lives away for a leader who can't control his temper, that's perfectly fine with me. That's their mistake."

 _Why did they take that hit for him?! All he wanted from his team was for them to trust him and to take care of themselves and of the innocent! This is exactly what he didn't want to happen!_

But it had...

Jayden looked up to see Robtish slowly walking towards him. Feeling unshed tears in his blue eyes, Jayden quickly flipped over and positioned himself over the out-cold Kevin and Emily, valiantly covering them with his own body.

Just as they did for him.

"Don't touch them!"

And he would protect them with his own life.

 **"Windstorm Arrow!"**

 **"Forest Hammer!"**

 _ **"Full Power!"**_

The rest of the Marauders were destroyed in a flurry of green and pink energy, and Mike and Mia was flipped out mid-air and had landed in front of Jayden within seconds.

"We're here, Jayden," Mike exclaimed. Jayden glanced back, looking at Mike and Mia with mixed emotions. One the one hand, he was happy to know he wasn't the last one standing.

But on the other, he didn't want them to end up like Kevin and Emily.

"Oh, five for the price of one!" Robtish exclaimed. "This must really be my lucky day!"

The Nighlock then raised his sword, ready to attack one last time.

Mike and Mia raised their swords, ready to defend and attack Robtish.

But his attack was held back by another sword, and it wasn't Jayden's.

The white-colored Nighlock had jumped into the fray, his sword drawn. He wordlessly attacked Robtish, before turning around to block Mike and Mia's duo attack. After pushing Robtish back, he struck at Mike and Mia one last time, knocking them both back, de-morphing them on the way.

Jayden quickly grabbed a Spin Sword, which happened to be Emily's _**(seeing as how he lost his)**_ , and used it to block this new Nighlock's sword.

"Deker?!" Robtish exclaimed after he got his bearings back. "What gives?! I thought we were on the same side!"

"The Red Ranger is my opponent, not yours," the Nighlock _**(who was named Deker, apparently)**_ calmly replied. It sent chills down Jayden's spine. "I'll ask you once. Please, leave."

"And what if I don't want to?!" Robtish asked, before charging into the fight once again.

Jayden quickly rolled out of the way, grabbing Kevin's Sword as he went. He then used both Swords to block both Nighlocks. After pushing them off of him, he carefully stepped in front of Kevin and Emily, in a protective stance.

"C'mon, I'll take both of you on if I have to," Jayden said. "Whatever it takes to protect my friends."

This time, Jayden was the one who charged first. Deker and Robtish quickly followed.

Mike and Mia stirred, both regaining control over their bodies. The two glanced up in time to watch Jayden's fight with Deker and Robtish begin.

Jayden blocked both Deker and Robtish's attacks at the same time, intermixing his attacks with the other two's, not only aimed at Jayden but also at each other.

"Buzz off, Deker! I'm the one who's in charge here!"

When Robtish aimed for the kill at Jayden, again, Deker stepped in before he could move another inch. "Stand aside, Robtish!"

"Both of you need to back off," Jayden growled, pointing both of his Swords at his two opponents.

After Robtish blocked one of Jayden's attacks with his wristbrace, he decided he couldn't take it anymore.

"That's it! It's time to destroy you!"

"Wrong!" Jayden called. "It's to get fired up. **Havoc Mode: Engage! Twin Fire Daggers:** _ **Full Fury**_ **!** "

Morphed in Havoc Mode, and both of his Daggers engulfed in flames, Jayden once again charged.

Mike and Mia both watched as Jayden's strikes at Deker and Robtish sent literal shockwaves throughout the battlefield. Mike was irritated that all he and Mia could do was watch, as Mia wondered where Jayden was finding the strength to hold both of Nighlocks off.

The trio then had to take a break. The moment was intense as Jayden then calmly said, "Okay, boys. Your move."

A cracking sound occured and Robtish stepped away. "You're both in luck. I'm dried out. Watch out, Deker. Master Xandred won't be happy when he hears about this!"

And Robtish left through a gap in one of the nearby rocks.

Jayden and Deker both lowered their weapons pointed at each other, as the former asked, "Why did you help me?"

"I'm what they call a rouge Nighlock," Deker replied. "I only act upon my own interests. And right now, my only desire is fight someone worthy and skilled enough to be my opponent." Deker raised his sword, while Jayden slung the Dagger in his left hand over his shoulder while he raised the one in his right. "Someone worthy to fight against my sword, Uramasa."

"Jayden, don't!" Mike called out.

Too late, Deker and Jayden had already engaged in combat.

It was short, however. Despite Jayden using two Daggers, Deker only landed one hit, against Jayden's right shoulder, and it caused Jayden to drop the Dagger in that hand and fall to his knees in pain.

"NO!" Mia cried.

"That was too easy. This isn't the battle I want," Deker muttered. "Robtish's Double Slash took too much out of you." Deker pointed his sword at Jayden once. "Next time, Red Ranger, you will taste this slash!"

Jayden barely moved out of the way in time. He looked back in time to see that Deker's slash at cut the rock behind cleanly in half.

"Wait!" Jayden called as Deker walked away.

"Take care of your team, Red Ranger," Deker replied, without looking back. "Revenge is never the answer. Control your anger. Isn't that why your friend in yellow took that hit for you?"

Jayden's heart jumped in realization.

Kevin had just followed Emily, trying to move her out of the way in time, but Emily...

 _Emily knew what she was doing the entire time._

Deker then leaped up onto the cliff above, morphing into a human along the way.

A familiar-looking human.

"You'd be wise to listen to your team, Red Ranger," Deker advised. "Because they're right."

Mike caught Mia's attention. "Mia, isn't that guy the same one who came to spectate Jayden and Kevin's fight when we fought that creep Madimot?" Mia's eyes connected with Mike's, both thinking the same thing. The two ran forward, standing next to Jayden, as Mike called out, "Hey, you! Who are you?! Are you a human or a Nighlock?"

"I am Deker," was all the man said. "Nothing more, nothing less."

And Deker left without another word.

Kevin stirred, and Mia immediately noticed.

"Kevin!" She ran over to him. "Are you okay?"

Mike soon followed, pulling out his Samuraizer, "Antonio, hey. Listen, get all the first aid kits in the house ready. Kevin and Emily are beat up pretty bad."

Jayden glanced over at his broken team. De-morphing, Jayden walked over to them and kneeled next to Emily. "You guys take care of Kevin. I've got Emily."

Careful not to tousle her, Jayden picked her up bridal-style and began carrying back to the house.

Emily was still out cold, but that didn't mean she couldn't feel an immense sadness coming from Jayden.

 _Their tough leader was crying because Emily had to get hurt just to teach him a simple, but important lesson._

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

 **Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California**

No tears came to Jayden's eyes. Nope, he was all cried out. He had shed any tears he had when he was covering them all, when he was fighting both Robtish and Deker both at the same time, when he was carrying Emily back to the House.

He had left his Samuraizer and the Lion Zord behind.

All four of his teammates were injured because of him.

He knew that he couldn't face them, none of them, not even Ji.

 _This was all his fault._

As he left the House that night, Jayden felt his heart clench with painful sorrow.

Why did this _ **hurt**_ so much?

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~

 _ **Original Shinkenger Episode: Act 11**_

 _ **Original PRS Episode: Test of the Leader**_

 **Note: Next chapter should be out very shortly.**

A/N: Do review, please. **If you guys have any ideas you want me to consider adding, please PM me.** A preview for the next chapter:

 _ **Season 1, Episode 12:**_ _"Seeing Red"_

 _"With Jayden gone, the Rangers struggle to stay afloat without him. But there's only person who can bring him back."_


End file.
